Noida techie on leopard trail dies as her sports bike collides with car in Gurgaon

GURGAON: A 28-year-old techie who was on her first long ride with an all-women biker group died after her sports bike collided head on with a car near Southern Peripheral Road in the city on Sunday.
Police said Somita Singh and a dozen members of the group started their drive from Noida early on Sunday morning and went up to the Leopard Trail on Pandala Hills in Gurgaon. They were on their way back around 9.45am, when the accident occurred.

Somita, who belonged to Lucknow and worked with an IT firm in Noida, had joined an academy that trains women on riding bikes last month. She completed a 16-hour training programme and took a BMW G310 bike on rent from the Noida-based academy to participate in her first tour on Sunday.
Police said Somita's bike hit a Verna car at a turn near SPR, throwing her onto the road. Though she was wearing all safety gear and a helmet, she sustained severe injuries, including internal bleeding in the head. Somita was taken to the Civil Hospital in Sector 10, where doctors declared her dead.
Somita's father Mahendra Pal Singh said he got a call from Gurgaon cops about the accident around 10am on Sunday. He left Lucknow as soon as possible, but Somita was declared dead by the time he reached NCR.
Mahendra Pal said Somita had joined software firm Capgemini and shifted to Noida eight months ago. The family was not aware that Somita was learning how to ride a bike.
In his complaint, Mahendra Pal alleged that it was the academy's fault that Somita was involved in the accident.
"The incident occurred due to falling from a bike that was rented from the academy, Letsryde India Training Academy," Pal told cops.
Gurgaon police spokesperson Sandeep Kumar said that an FIR was registered at the Badshapur police station under sections 106 (causing death by negligence) and 281 (rash driving on public way) of BNS.
"A team is conducting an investigation into the case. The driver of the Verna has been identified, and the car has been seized. The company (academy) mentioned by the complainant is also under investigation. The accused will be arrested soon," police said in a statement on Monday.
A post-mortem examination was carried out and the body was handed over to the family for last rites, the statement added.
A staff member of Letsryde India Training Academy told TOI Somita approached them through Instagram last month. She opted for 16 hours of their basic training programme, which was spread in four sessions over three weekends.
"She took the bike along with the safety gear on rent from the academy. She brought her own helmet for the ride," the staff member said.
According to eyewitnesses, the staff member said, Somita was speeding and was unable to control the bike on a sharp turn when she hit the Verna car.
Letsryde founder Kuldeep said the academy started operating from Noida's Sector 135 in 2016 and has since trained 3,000 women on how to ride bikes. Kuldeep, who was leading the biker group on Sunday's tour, said he saw the crash in his bike's rear-view mirror.
"Somita was three or four positions behind me. We were riding in a single file, with marshals posted after every few riders to communicate instructions. (After the crash) I rushed back with others and we took her in our rescue vehicle — a Jimny — to the nearest hospital. The first two hospitals refused admission. It was only at the third — Civil Hospital — that she was admitted, but by then it was too late," he said.
The founder said Somita had embraced bike riding despite her fears about how her family would react.
"She was very lively, fun-loving and full of confidence. She hadn't told her family about riding, but she was undeterred and adventurous. She wanted to go places. Her state of mind was very focused and she had a spark," he said.
Asked about their training sessions, Kuldeep said the academy tests all candidates before allowing them to go on tours.
"Somita had passed the tests and had taken the certifications from the academy," he said. Minakshi Singh, a Noida resident who has been a biker for years, was riding just behind Somita on Sunday.
"It all happened so fast. The car came out of nowhere. She didn't even get a chance to react. I can't believe she's gone," Minakshi, who was one of the marshals in the group, said. Minakshi said that the programme Somita opted for includes 5-6 women trainers. The marshal said she was supposed to ride in fourth position, but Somita "wanted that spot" and was confident. "So, I adjusted my position because parallel riding is against etiquette. Two bikes should never be side by side," she said.
The group, she said, strictly follows safety protocols. "Every 5-10km, we halt, re-group, and remind riders to maintain discipline. During Sunday's ride, we stopped three times on the mountain trail to tell riders not to overtake and stay in line. Somita was going downhill in fourth gear when the crash happened," Minakshi said. Just hours before the accident, Somita had posted a glowing review for Letsryde on Google. "Amazing experience and they increase your self-belief! Never been prouder!" she wrote.
On Monday, before taking the biker's body back to Lucknow, a family member accompanying Mahendra Pal said Somita's brother had died in a swimming pool accident a while back. "The family has lost another child. They have one daughter back home," he said.
(With inputs from Ashni Dhaor in Noida)