Nayagarh: Returning home in an auto-rickshaw after attending a cremation ritual turned fatal for two women as they got killed and four others sustained critical injuries when the three-wheeler and a speeding car collided on NH-57 near Bhogada under Daspalla police limits in Odisha's Nayagarh district late last night.

The deceased were identified as Tuni Behera and Bisika Behera, both hailing from Tendabadi village in Daspalla area.

The injured ones-- Rashmita Behera, Urmila Behera, Paluni Nayak and auto-rickshaw driver Sabar Pradhan-- were initially admitted to Nayagarh district headquarters hospital and later shifted to a hospital in Bhubaneswar as their condition deteriorated.

Though the car has been seized by police, the driver of the vehicle went absconding after the accident.