Gwalior temple crash: Google Maps route under probe, cops test driver for alcohol

Fifteen people were killed and over 25 injured when the speeding truck ploughed into devotees outside Gwalior's 125-year-old Sheetla Mata temple on Sunday. Police are probing suspected alcohol use, a possible navigation shortcut and checkpoint failures.Cops are probing if the driver was intoxicated or followed a wrong Google Maps route.Gwalior,Oct 19, 2026 13:57 ISTPolice are investigating whether a truck driver was under the influence of alcohol or had followed a shortcut suggested by Google Maps before his vehicle crashed into a crowd of devotees near a temple in Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior, news agency Press Trust of India reported on Monday.At least 15 people were killed and more than 25 injured when the speeding truck ploughed into devotees outside the 125-year-old Sheetla Mata temple on Sunday.According to the police, two paddy-laden trucks, which were allegedly overloaded, travelled about 7 km on a road where heavy vehicles were prohibited before one of them went out of control near the shrine.The driver, Bilbagh Singh, a 40-year-old Delhi resident, was arrested hours after fleeing the crash site. He was found hiding near the shrine in a state of shock, Jhansi Road police station's acting station house officer Ashish Sharma told PTI. "We have collected a blood sample of the driver to ascertain whether he was under the influence of alcohol when the truck entered the restricted road and ran over devotees waiting for darshan," Sharma said.Police were also investigating whether the driver had followed a shortcut suggested by Google Maps that directed him towards the temple, he added. Responding to reports that the truck was carrying 32 tonnes of paddy, Sharma said the vehicle had not yet been officially weighed, although preliminary findings confirmed that it was heavily loaded.Locals said the two trucks, travelling from Bhitarwar towards Punjab, bypassed the main highway and took the Chinaur-Amrol route after the drivers became lost on unfamiliar rural roads.Villagers near Amrol said they had warned the drivers that the road ahead was closed to heavy vehicles. However, the drivers continued, with locals claiming that they could smell alcohol in their breath.Despite a designated police checkpoint on the Chinaur route, both trucks passed through unhindered towards the shrine, where an estimated one lakh devotees had gathered for Ashtami celebrations.As the road narrowed near a steep incline, one truck stopped while the other sped down the slope out of control. It destroyed roadside stalls and ran over devotees before crashing into the temple's entrance gate.The impact damaged a section of the structure and killed 15 people, including five teenagers and two women.Locals have questioned how the two heavy vehicles crossed police checkpoints and reached the crowded temple despite restrictions. Witnesses said the truck's collision with the gate stopped it from moving further into dense queues of worshippers.- Ends