RAIGAD BUS TRAGEDY: MAHA GUV CANCELS HIS I-DAY RECEPTION

Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao on Saturday cancelled the Independence Day "At Home" reception against the backdrop of the July 28 road accident in the state's Raigad district in which 30 employees of an agricultural university were killed.

Thirty out of 31 passengers in a bus, all staff of the Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapith in Dapoli, were killed after the vehicle plunged into a 500-foot deep gorge near Ambenali Ghat on the Poladpur-Mahabaleshwar road.

The traditional Independence Day reception hosted by the Governor, known as "At Home", was scheduled to be held at 5.30 pm on August 15 at the Raj Bhavan at Ganeshkind in Pune, an official release said.

The statement said that the Governor took the decision to cancel the reception against the tragic backdrop of the death of several employees and officials in the accident.

The Governor is also the exofficio Chancellor of all the universities in the state.

The 'At Home' official Independence Day Reception is hosted by the Governor every year. It was planned on the evening of August 15 at the Pune Raj Bhavan but now stands cancelled.

The Raj Bhavan statement, however, clarified that the Governor will attend the flaghoisting ceremony, at the Council Hall in Pune at 9 am on August 15, as scheduled.