The Haryana Government has formed a four-member team to probe the school bus accident in Mahendragarh on Thursday, in which six children were killed and 20 others were wounded. The incident occurred near Unhani village in Kanina around 8.30 am, when the bus was carrying around 40 children — from primary to secondary classes — to the G L Public School, collided with a tree and overturned. Police have registered an FIR in connection with the case.
The deceased children have been identified as Satyam, Yuvraj, Vansh, Ricky, Anshu and Yakush.
Meanwhile, the Haryana government has issued a show cause notice to the private school to explain why it was open on Thursday despite it being a holiday on account of Eid. The Education Department of Haryana has also sent a directive to all private schools seeking an affidavit to prove that their vehicles are adhering to the transport rules.
Action Taken So far
“We have taken self-affidavits from the private schools. They also have to provide an affidavit saying that their vehicles functioned according to the transport rules and norms. Third, whoever is driving their vehicles, if they are found drunk, then they (schools) will hold the responsibility,” Haryana Education Minister Seema Trikha told reporters on Thursday.
Furthermore, the Mahendragarh district education officer has also sent a proposal to the state government for cancelling the private school’s recognition.
So far, police have arrested three people, including the school principal Deepti, one more school official whose name is Hoshiar Singh and the bus driver in connection with the case. Regional Transport Authority (RTA) Assistant Secretary Pradeep Kumar has also been placed under suspension following the incident.
‘Bus Driver Was Drunk’
The driver, Dharmender, was driving rashly due to which he lost control of the bus, which rammed into a tree and overturned, police said, citing reports. Police said the driver was caught from the accident site and his medical examination confirmed he was under the influence of alcohol.
An injured student told reporters that the bus was being driven at a high speed when the driver lost control of the vehicle, resulting in the crash. “The driver appeared to be drunk,” he said.
Mandeep Singh, a lawyer from Kheri Talwana village, claimed some villagers and parents stopped the bus upon learning that the driver was drunk but the principal intervened and asked them to return him the key, and promised he would be replaced on Friday.
After this, the bus driver again drove off. Minutes later, however, the bus met with the accident, Singh said, adding the fitness certificate of the vehicle had expired long back and it did not have insurance and other documents also.
According to an FIR lodged by a Class 12 student, the driver was stinking of alcohol and ignored repeated requests by children to drive slowly, and allegedly even threatened them.
There was no helper or any woman official on the bus, said the complainant.
The FIR has been filed under IPC Sections 109 (whoever abets any offence), 279 (rash driving), 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 336 (whoever does any act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life or the personal safety others), 337 (causing hurt by endangering life), 120-B (Whoever is a party to a criminal conspiracy) and relevant provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and various other leaders have expressed grief over the accident and called for urgent measures to prevent such devastating incidents in the future.
The incident has also raised serious concerns about the safety standards of school transportation as the police said the school bus lacked essential documentation and had previously been fined for non-compliance.
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