Heartbreaking but inspiring: Youth donates eyes after accident

For 20 minutes after his body was split into two by a lorry that ran over him, 24-year-old Harish begged for help as passersby gathered around, taking photographs and videos of him flailing his arms in agony.

Knowing he would not make it out alive, he gave the crowd his mother's and a few other relatives' numbers, asking that they be informed of the accident. By then, an ambulance arrived to rush him to the Nelamangala general hospital, 18 kilometres away.

In a final act of selflessness, the youth begged the ambulance driver, Manjunath, to tell doctors at the hospital to donate his eyes. He was quiet for the remainder of the ride, and by the time they arrived at the hospital, Harish had passed away.

The incident occurred around 8.30 am when the victim was travelling towards Bengaluru on his Pulsar motorcycle. A native of Karegowdanahalli in Gubbi taluk,


Tumakuru, Harish lived in a rented room in Laggere and worked as a cash-filling attendant for Scientific Security Management Solutions private limited in OMBR Layout, Ramamurthynagar.

The victim reportedly rode his bike home on Saturday to cast his vote in the local elections, and took leave on Monday to spend time with his mother and older brother. He left home early on Tuesday to return to the city for work when tragedy struck.

As he was riding near Tippagondanahalli, a speeding lorry (KA-02-AE-4518) allegedly attempted to overtake the two-wheeler, causing Harish to lose his balance and fall. The front tyres of the lorry allegedly ran over his torso, splitting him into two. The severed lower half of his torso and legs lay strewn on one side, while his head and upper torso lay in the middle of the road.

It took no time for a crowd to gather, but instead of helping, they began clicking photos and taking videos of the gory aftermath. The Nelamangala rural police and ambulance who reached the spot 10-12 minutes later to shift him to the hospital reportedly got stuck in highway traffic due to VVIP movement occurring simultaneously, but it was 9 am by the time they reached, and Harish was no more.



"He was conscious for almost 20 minutes after the accident, and was obviously in a lot of pain. He managed to tell us the numbers of his mother, brother, and a few other relatives, requesting us to call them. We gave him some water to drink, but could not do much. When the ambulance arrived, he told the driver to make sure doctors donated his eyes at the hospital," an eyewitness, Rangaswamy, told Mirror.


When contacted, Dr Vinay Kumar, who conducted the autopsy for Harish, confirmed that the victim had been brought dead to the hospital.


"There was another doctor on duty when the victim was brought in. The police report said the accident took place around 8.30am, and he reached the hospital by 9 am, so he was roughly alive for 20-30 minutes," Dr Vinay said.


As per his request, Harish's eyes were donated to Narayana Nethralaya. Describing him as a "humble, sincere person", Harish's co-worker Venkat told Mirror that the two had been close friends for almost two years.


"There are no words to describe this loss. Harish was a kind and honest person who never hurt a soul. He did not have a father, and he considered his mother and brother most precious. Even in deat, he was noble, and ensured his eyes were donated," he added.


Additional superintendent of police (Bengaluru rural) M Narayana termed the incident tragic and said, "As soon as we got word of the accident, our sub-inspector, who was on duty for the Home Minister's movement, rushed to the spot and attended to the victim. There was a lot of highway traffic, but he got the road cleared for the ambulance to reach the hospital. By the time they got there, however, the victim had passed away. The lorry driver had tried escaping after the accident, but we nabbed him and registered a case for death due to negligence."