Haryana Bus Crash: The medical certificate for the bus was six years old.
Three persons have been detained at the event, including the principal of the school whose bus overturned in Mahendragarh, Haryana, killing six children. In addition to the school secretary, the driver has also been brought into jail. It is said that the driver leaped out of the bus moments before it crashed into a tree.
According to a top police official, the driver’s medical examination verified that alcohol was in his system.
Fourteen of the students who were hospitalized after the accident have been discharged but three are critical.
Students from Class 4 to 10 were heading to the GL Public School on Thursday when the bus carrying them rammed into a tree and overturned. The bus belonged to the school and documents showed that the bus’ fitness certificate had expired six years ago, in 2018. A state road transport official has been suspended.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Mahendra Rana said in Hindi, “A case has been registered under sections of the Indian Penal Code dealing with culpable homicide not amounting to murder and others. Sections of the Motor Vehicle Act have also been applied because the fitness certificate was not valid. The driver, Dharmendra, the principal, Dipti, and a staff member, Hoshiyar Singh, who was a secretary and looked after the buses and other such matters, have been arrested”
Alcohol was found in the driver’s bloodstream, according to a medical examination,” Mr. Rana continued.
In response to an inquiry regarding locals’ claims that several of them had stopped the bus and reported the driver’s intoxication to the school authorities thirty minutes before the accident, the police officer stated that the individual making the claim had recorded their testimony. He also disclosed that there had been a recent challan against the bus.
State Education Minister Seema Trikha said an inquiry is being conducted to establish why classes were being held in the school on Eid, which is a holiday.
It was appropriate for the school to be open today. Aside from that, we have obtained self-affidavits from private schools and issued a show-cause notice. The schools will need to certify in writing that the vehicles they utilize for transportation are compliant with all applicable transportation laws,” she said.
