Rajkot, Apr 16: An electric bus operated for Rajkot Municipal Corporation rammed into several vehicles as it was passing a traffic signal here on Wednesday morning, resulting in the death of four persons and injuries to four others, police said.
Closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage showed the bus failed to stop at the signal near Indira Circle on the city's 150-feet ring road around 10 a.m. It ploughed through at least two four-wheelers and six two-wheelers before halting at a distance from the impact site.
"Four people — two men and two women — lost their lives after being run over by the bus, which knocked down several two-wheelers, while four persons were injured,” said Gandhigram police station inspector Sejal Meghani. Among the injured is a seven-year-old boy, the youngest victim of the incident.
The driver, identified as Shishupalsinh Rana, sustained injuries and is currently hospitalised, police said. The crash triggered public outrage, resulting in vandalising the bus by an irate mob, prompting police to resort to a baton charge to disperse the crowd.
The bus belongs to the RMC but was being operated by a private agency, the civic body stated. The Rajkot Municipal Corporation announced a compensation of Rs 15 lakh each for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 2 lakh for those injured.
"A case has been registered at Gandhigram police station. The bus has been sent for mechanical testing under the supervision of the Regional Transport Office (RTO),” said Rajkot’s DCP (Zone 2), Jagdish Bangarwa.
"The driver’s blood sample has also been collected to determine if he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs,” he said. CCTV footage shows the bus speeding through the signal without stopping.
“It appears either the driver didn’t apply the brakes or there was a brake failure. The exact cause will be confirmed after the investigation,” Bangarwa added.
The RMC has terminated the services of the bus driver with immediate effect and assured strict action against the concerned private agency responsible for operating the bus after the investigation is completed. The deceased individuals are identified as RMC employee Raju Gida (35), Sangeeta Chaudhary (40), Chinmay Bhatt (25) and Kiran Kakkar (56).
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