CHENNAI: A drunk driving incident near Pallikaranai injured six people, including four women and a 12-year-old girl, on Tuesday evening. The accused driver, identified as Bala (36) from Semmencheri, was arrested, and the car was impounded by the police.

The accident occurred around shops and eateries lining the Nookampalayam Main Road in Perumbakkam's Ezhil Nagar, adjacent to an eight-story residential complex. The area, bustling with tea stalls and snack vendors, had a sizeable gathering when Bala lost control of the car.

Eyewitnesses reported that the intoxicated driver lost control of his vehicle, first ploughing into pedestrians standing by the roadside and then colliding with a stationary auto-rickshaw. The impact left the auto damaged and injured its passengers, along with bystanders.

The injured victims - Sandhya (28), Arun Kumar (24), Shanmugapriya (12), Thanam (32), Sausiya, and Nisha - were rushed to a nearby hospital in an ambulance. The Perumbakkam police and the Pallikaranai Traffic Investigation Wing immediately detained the driver at the scene.

During interrogation, Bala admitted to being drunk at the time of the incident. A case has been registered under sections related to drunk driving and causing grievous injury, with further investigations are under way.