Bhubaneswar/Angul, Oct 26: Based on the report submitted by the three-member probe committee formed by the district administration to investigate the bus mishap in Angul that claimed six lives and left several passengers injured, the administration held rash driving and over loading in the bus responsible for the mishap.
Anil Samal, Angul Collector also stated that the carelessness of the motorcyclist, who also died due to the bus mishap, as another reason that caused the accident. He said that as against the prescribed capacity of 46 passengers, the vehicle carried 69 passengers.
The Transport Minister Ramesh Majhi said that the Road Transport department has made new guidelines to keep a check on the rising road accidents. The department has decided that every bus would mention their seating and standing capacity which would be made mandatory for every bus. A toll-free number which would be written in all buses where any passenger can file a complaint of overloading will be launched soon by the government. The minister added that steps would be taken to identify the accident-prone area for which the Transport department will soon convene a meeting with NHAI and Public Works department.
Notably, five passengers and a motor cyclist died while 34 sustained critical injuries as the bus they were travelling in fell off a bridge on Tuesday. The incident happened near Tukuda, about 20 km from Angul, on National Highway-55.
As per sources, the driver of the bus named ‘Janhamamu’ which was on its way to Athamalik from Angul, lost control of the vehicle, and fell off a bridge near Tukuda after colliding with a bike. The biker and four passengers in the bus died on the spot while more than 25 injured passengers were rescued by the locals and hospitalized at the district headquarters hospital.
