Waiting for son to arrive from Dubai, a mother’s body on ice slabs, under husk
HYDERABAD: For family members of Ragula Rajavva, 50, one of the 58 passengers killed in Tuesday’s road accident in Telangana’s Jagtial district, preserving her body until the arrival of her son Laxman from Dubai isn’t an easy task.
After post-mortem, doctors at the Jagtial hospital handed the body over to the family members, who couldn’t afford to hire a freezer to preserve it; so they placed two blocks of ice on the body and covered it with husk.
“What else can we do? We have no money. We are waiting for her son to arrive to perform the last rites,” said the sister of Rajavva, who belonged to Dabbu Timmayyapalle village.
Rajavva was one of the 58 people killed when an overloaded state-run bus they were travelling in fell down a 30-feet gorge in Jagtial. The dead included 36 women and five children. Bodies of the victims were being preserved on ice and covered by paddy husk in Shanivarampeta, Himmatraopet, Ramasagaram, Tirmalpur and Konapur villages along the Kodimyal-jagtial road.
On Wednesday afternoon, the district administration distributed ₹10,000 to families of each of the victims for performing the last rites.even so, the families would have had to fetch freezer boxes from Hyderabad, which would have been an expensive affair. “The government will soon distribute ₹5 lakh each to the families of victims as ex gratia,” state transport minister P Mahender Reddy said.
Most of the youth from these villages go to the Gulf countries in search of livelihood, leaving behind parents and wives.
Gajula Ashok of Shanivarampet village lost his seven-year old son, Harsha, who died on the spot. His wife Latha died in hospital. Ashok is rushing back to India from Dubai after being informed of the accident.
The bus was the only mode of transport for the people of six villages in the area looking to reach district headquarters. According to Sudhakar of Shanivarampet, the bus makes only three trips a day. “If we miss the first trip, we have to wait for at least another five hours for the next trip. That is the reason why the villagers board the bus in large numbers beyond its carrying capacity”.
MAN AT WHEEL HAD WON BEST DRIVER AWARD LAST MONTH
The driver of the bus that plunged into a ravine in Telangana killing 58 people was conferred the best driver award by the government last month, an official said Wednesday . The official said the bus driver, Srinivas was earlier rewarded for best fuel efficiency, which indicated his impeccable driving skills.