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A senior executive at Barclays Global Service Centre in Noida, his wife and their two young sons were killed when their SUV crashed into a road divider on the Ganga Expressway in Uttar Pradesh’s Hardoi district on Wednesday, after one of its tyres burst, police said.
The family was on its way from Noida to their hometown, Prayagraj, to celebrate Bhai Dooj and Chhath with relatives.
The victims have been identified as Saurabh Upadhyay, 40, his wife Menaka Upadhyay, 35, and their sons, seven-year-old Vyom and 18-month-old Shivom, The Times of India reported.
Tyre burst, say police
“Today, 11 November 2026, information was received that a car travelling on the Ganga Expressway in the Sandi area lost control due to a tyre burst and collided with the divider,” Additional Superintendent of Police (East) Hardoi Subodh Gautam told media.
“It was found that Saurabh Upadhyay, his wife Menaka Upadhyay and their two children were travelling in their private vehicle to their native village in Prayagraj for Chhath Puja. Near a village in the Sandi area, their car hit the divider. Saurabh Upadhyay and Menka Upadhyay died on the spot, while both children were taken to the hospital in a critical condition, where they subsequently died,” he said.
The police have taken custody of the bodies and started the necessary legal proceedings, the ASP said.
SUV dragged 30 metres along divider
The accident took place at around 1 pm near Bhatouli Mafi village, under the Sandi police station area, at kilometre 317 of the Ganga Expressway, about 40 km from the district headquarters, according to TOI.
According to eyewitnesses, the SUV suddenly went out of control and rammed into the central divider. It then skidded along the divider for nearly 30 metres before coming to a halt. The impact tore the vehicle apart, scattering parts across the expressway, and the youngest child was thrown off the expressway, TOI reported.
Police teams from the Sandi, Bilgram and Harpalpur police stations rushed to the spot. Doctors at a nearby Community Health Centre (CHC) tried to revive Shivom with CPR, but he was declared dead, according to the report.
Family was heading home for festivals
According to Saurabh’s brother-in-law, Shishir Upadhyay, the family had left Noida on Wednesday morning for Prayagraj.
Saurabh was from the EWS colony in Neem Sarai, Mundera, in Prayagraj. He was the only son of 65-year-old Jai Govind Upadhyay, and had two younger sisters, both married.
Menaka was originally from Ghazipur, and her parents now live in Lucknow’s Gomti Nagar. She was her parents’ only daughter and had a younger brother.
The couple married in 2018 and were raising their two children in Noida. Menaka had worked as a manager at a company in Noida, but left her job before Shivom was born, TOI reported.
