Hassan, Oct 16: Nine people, including four children, were killed and 10 injured in a pile-up involving three vehicles here, police sources said.

The accident involving a milk tanker, a Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus, and a tempo traveller took place in Arsikere taluk here around 11 pm on Saturday, they said.

All those killed were travelling in the tempo traveller, which was crushed between the bus and the milk tanker. While six of them died on the spot, three succumbed on the way to the hospital, the sources said.

The injured are undergoing treatment at a hospital here, they said.

Superintendent of Police, Hassan, Hariram Shankar and senior officials visited the accident site and all necessary procedures are being followed, they said.

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Mangaluru: Fr Melwin J Pinto SJ, Pro-chancellor of St Aloysius University Rector of St Aloysius Institutions, and Vice President of Mangalore Jesuit Educational Society (MJES), breathed his last on Friday, April 10. He was 63.

Born in 1963, Fr Melwin Pinto completed his schooling and college education at St Aloysius before joining the Jesuit order on June 20, 1981. He was ordained as a Jesuit priest on April 14, 1997.

Over the years, he held several academic qualifications, including an MA in English, a Master’s degree in Education, and diplomas in psychology and counselling as well as school administration.

He began his career in education as headmaster of St Joseph’s Primary School and High School in Hassan, serving between 1996 and 1999.

He later founded St Joseph’s Indian PU College and served as its principal until 2007. He subsequently served as headmaster of St Aloysius High School, Mangaluru, from 2007 to 2011, and later as principal of St Joseph’s PU College, Hassan, until 2012.

Fr Melwin Pinto also worked with Vatican Communications and Radio in Rome, contributing to its English desk for Asia and Indian languages.
He later served as superior and director of Fatima Retreat House in Valencia for two years from May 2017, before being appointed as superior of the Jesuit study home ‘Vidyaniketan’ in Dharwad.

He was also closely associated with the development of St Aloysius Institutions and played a key role in securing the status of a Deemed-to-be University. His contribution to the education sector and efforts towards innovation were widely acknowledged. He was known for maintaining close relations with people from all sections of society. 

Legislative Council MLA Ivan D’Souza, in a statement, said the demise of Fr Melwin J Pinto was a huge loss to the educational and religious fields and had created a significant void in society.

Dakshina Kannada District in-charge Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao also expressed grief, stating that his service and contributions to education would always be remembered.

Details regarding the funeral are yet to be announced.