33 injured in school bustruck collision
Eyewitness says the bus driver was driving rashly in foggy conditions, police yet to register case
AMRITSAR: Three female students were injured after a school bus and truck collision due to dense smog at around 7.50am along the Rajasansi Road in Amritsar on Monday. The students are Jasmeet Kaur and Robin of Class 12 and Pawandeep Kaur of Class 11. They are students of the Holy Heart Presidency School at Loharka Road in Amritsar.
Following the collision, they were admitted at the Ivy Hospital. There were 35 students in the bus, and other students have suffered minor injuries.
The injured were taken to Ajnala Government Hospital for first aid. The doctors said Jasmeet and Robin suffered head injuries but are out of danger, while Pawandeep suffered leg injuries.
Jasmeet’s father Jasbir Singh said, “It is a killer smog and lives are at risk. Schools need to delay the class timings. The students are supposed to reach school at 8.30am daily, which is not feasible as the weather conditions are extremely unsafe.”
He said that his daughter banged her head when the driver applied brakes in a bid to halt the vehicle. The bus had hit the rear of a stationary truck and was damaged. Its front mirror had smashed. An eyewitness, Sukhdev Singh, said that the bus was being driven rashly despite smog.
“The truck was parked along the roadside and the driver was doing some repair work. I was repairing my truck as well. I saw a school bus coming in high speed. We even signalled the driver to slow down,” said the eyewitness.
“Eventually, he lost control of the bus and collided with the truck. The students were bleeding so we rushed them to a nearby hospital. Even the school bus driver has suffered injuries,” he added. School officials visited the victims at the hospital.
Meanwhile, Amritsar deputy commissioner Kamaldeep Singh Sangha had directed the schools to extend school timings to 9.30am last week.
School principal Vikram Seth said, “A circular was issued to all students on Monday regarding delay in school timings.”
No case has been registered as police has not received any complaint from the parents by now.