On Friday, a private bus going from Hyderabad to Bengaluru caught fire in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh, in which 20 people died. According to a senior police officer, a bike rider is also included in the dead and the death toll is likely to increase. According to initial reports, a bus and a motorcycle collided near Chinnatekur. The motorcycle got stuck under the bus and its open fuel cap caught fire.
Kurnool Range DIG Koya Praveen said, ‘Police are going inside the bus and taking stock of the situation.’ He said that the exact information about the dead and survivors will be known only after complete investigation and identification of all the people. At the time of the incident, the door of the bus got jammed due to short circuit and the bus completely burnt down within a few minutes. District Collector A. Siri said that there were a total of 41 people in the bus, including the driver. The condition of the survivors is stable and out of danger.
The main gate was jammed
The District Collector said that most of the passengers were sleeping at the time of the accident, hence many people could not get out of the bus in time. Due to some wires being cut, the door of the bus could not open immediately, which increased the seriousness of this accident. During the investigation, the police emptied the diesel tank of the bus as a precautionary measure. Meanwhile, a team of medical experts reached the spot and collected DNA samples of the burnt bodies. The DIG said that there was no fire control equipment present in the bus, which revealed lack of safety standards and emergency preparedness.
The passenger told what happened in the bus?
A passenger said, ‘We will leave from Kukatpally at night. Bengaluru Boarded the bus to go. I was sitting on the seat behind the driver. After a long journey, between 2:30 and 3:30 in the morning, I saw fire near the window of the bus and immediately informed the driver. We stopped the bus and tried to break the windows. Only about 20 people were able to come out while the rest were stuck inside.
The passenger said, ‘Everyone was sleeping in the bus. We woke everyone up. Since the main gate was closed, we broke the emergency window. We jumped out of the window. Many people broke the windows and got out of the bus, while the rest remained trapped inside.
Chief Ministers of both the states gave instructions to the officials
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has expressed deep grief over the incident. He spoke to the District Collector and SP and got information about the treatment of the injured. In a social media post, he wrote, ‘I am shocked to know about the bus fire accident near Chinnatekur village in Kurnool district. My condolences are with the families who have lost their loved ones. The government will provide all possible help to the injured and affected families.
Whereas Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy also expressed grief over the accident and expressed condolences to the families of the deceased. He immediately sent Gadwal District Collector and SP to the spot for relief measures and directed to set up a helpline for the family members.
PM Modi announced compensation
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief by tweeting and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the families of each deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund. President Draupadi Murmu also expressed grief over the incident and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured.
Health Minister Satyakumar Yadav said that DNA samples are being collected to identify the deceased. He has instructed Kurnool GGH Superintendent to provide best treatment to the injured patients. Preparations are being made for postmortem of the dead bodies and forensic doctors are on the spot. 12 people are hospitalized with minor injuries, of which 6 have been discharged after first aid. A person was seriously injured while jumping from the bus but his condition is stable.
23 thousand challan pending on bus
The Transport Department has given a big clarification regarding the accident. The department said that the luxury bus involved in this horrific accident was not from Telangana, but was registered in Raigarh district of Odisha. Investigation has also revealed that several e-challans for overspeeding in Telangana were pending on the bus, the total amount of which is approximately Rs 23 thousand. Officials said that the responsibility related to the fitness and permit of the bus comes under the jurisdiction of the Odisha government.
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