2 die as school bus hits bike

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, September 19

A speeding school bus killed two motorcycle-borne youths after ramming into their bike near Jora Fatak this morning. The deceased have been identified as Sahil (16) and Jaswant (19), both residents of the Chali Khoo area. Both were cousins.

The incident took place at around 8 pm when the boys were returning home from a temple. When they reached near Jorha Fatak, the speeding school bus driver hit their bike. The duo fell down on the road and were seriously injured. According to the onlookers, Sahil died on the spot while Jaswant was taken to the Civil Hospital. Police officials said Jaswant also died later while undergoing treatment.

Charanjit Singh, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP-1), stated that there was no student in the school bus when the accident took place. The driver of the bus managed to escape from the spot after leaving his vehicle behind. According to information, a large number of local residents and kin of the deceased gathered on the spot and staged a protest. The police reached also there and pacified the family members and relatives of the victims.

Jaswant was an employee of a solid waste management company while Sahil was a student in a private school.

Gagandeep Singh, SHO, Maqboolpura police statiion, said, “We have impounded the school bus and registered a case against the unidentified driver. He is still at large. We will arrest him soon”.

A large number of illegal school buses ferry schoolchildren in the city. There is no check by the police on the untrained drivers.

The ADCP-1 said about the illegal buses, “We got the information that youths were also driving rashly. We often organise counselling sessions for bus drivers”.