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Cyclist who died after collision with bin lorry in central London named

Cheistha Kochhar, 33, was on her way back from university when the incident happened

Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Monday 25 March 2024 15:54 EDT
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(amitabhk87/ Twitter)

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A cyclist who was killed in a collision with a bin lorry in central London has been named.

Cheistha Kochhar, 33, was on her way home from LSE, where she was a student, when she was fatally injured in Clerkenwell on 19 March.

She died at the scene on Clerkenwell Road at the junction with A201 Farringdon Road.

Ms Kochhar was pursuing a PhD in Behavioural Studies in London.

Her father Dr SP Kochhar, Director General of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) wrote online: ā€œTrying to collect the remains of my daughter, Cheistha Kochhar.

ā€œShe was run over by a truck on 19 Mar while cycling back from LSE, where she was doing her PhD.ā€

He said her death ā€œhas devastated us and her large circle of friendsā€.

Amitabh Kant, former CEO of NITI Aayog, said Ms Kochhar had worked with him at a policy think tank in India, NITI Aayog.

He wrote on X: ā€œShe was bright, brilliant & brave and always full of life. Gone away too early. RIP.ā€

A tribute page made for Ms Kochhar has gained dozens of messages, with friends, admirers and colleagues alike posting words of condolence and farewell.

Hyun-Jung Lee, a professor at LSE, said Ms Kochhar was in her Organisational Behaviour class last year.She wrote: ā€œCheistha was curious and actively engaged in discussion thus helped bring the entire class to a next level.

ā€œWhenever I saw her she brightened up my day with her trade-mark smile and optimism.

ā€œShe was way ahead of the game such that she was already in the process of consolidating her dissertation structure at such an early stage. We OB community lost a promising young scholar. We will miss her terribly.ā€

The Metropolitan Police has appealed for for witnesses and any road users with dashcam footage following the incident.

In a statement, the Met Police said: ā€œOfficers were called at 20.18hrs on Tuesday, 19 March to reports of a collision involving a lorry and a cyclist on Clerkenwell Road, near the junction with Farringdon Road.

ā€œOfficers attended along with paramedics from London Ambulance Service.ā€

Anyone who witnessed this incident, or road users who have footage which captured events, are asked to call 101 or 02082469820 @MetCC and quote CAD6903/19Mar.

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