Navi Mumbai: Investigations into the Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport (NMMT) accident, in which a 15-year-old student was mowed down by the bus, have revealed that the victim and his friend had left the school because their teacher sent them on an errand.
Snehal Padekar, the boy’s teacher in Vashi Municipality School, has been suspended by the Education Department. Ms. Padekar had sent victim Ramesh Rajaram Bobade (15) and his friend Babu Shankar Pawar (16) to buy chart paper from a stationery shop.
“Based on the statement given by the student who had accompanied the victim, the Education Department has suspended the teacher. As per the departmental inquiry, it emerged that the teacher had sent both the Class IX students to purchase chart papers for Class X students’ farewell programme. The deceased boy’s family will be provided insurance of 1.5 lakh and similar aid will also be provided by the NMMT,” Education Officer Sandeep Sangave said.
Around 10.15 a.m. on Friday, when Bobade and Pawar were on their way to the stationery shop, an NMMT bus going from Vashi bus depot to Thane hit both students near Gaodevi temple. A resident of Kopri village in Vashi, Bobade stayed with his aunt while his parents live in Kolhapur. “After the post-mortem, Bobade’s body was handed over to his aunt, who later left for Kolhapur for the last rites,” Assistant Police Inspector Rupesh Naik from the Vashi Police Station said.
Bus driver Deepak Patil was arrested and a court sent him to judicial custody on Friday.
