Coimbatore: A tipper truck plunged into the herd of 600 sheep, mowing down 63 of them at Peedampalli, on the outskirts of the city, on Thursday afternoon.
The animals were returning from an agriculture field after grazing, police sources said. "One of the owners of the herd, K Lakshmanan of Kalangal near Sulur, was taking the herd back to an open land on Thursday afternoon. The accident happened when the animals were crossing the road in front of the Amman Temple at Peedampalli Priviu. The truck, which was driven by P Naganathan of Nagammanaickenpalayam, was carrying M-sand to Kalapatti," a police officer said.
Local villagers stopped the truck and informed Sulur police. But, instead of filing a police complaint, the herders decided to get compensation from the truck owner. After the owner agreed to pay Rs 1.25 lakh as compensation for the dead animals, they let him take the vehicle.TNN
