In a heart-rending tragedy, eight children between the ages of five and ten years, were killed and 20 others seriously injured when the school bus in which they were returning home plunged into a stream in Khammam district on Tuesday afternoon.
Around 40 students of L.V. Reddy Memorial School were packed into the bus after the driver picked them up from Vepalagadda village in Kothagudam mandal. The bus suddenly fell off a narrow bridge which had no parapet wall across Peddavagu stream, eyewitness in Tungaram village in Chandrugonda mandal said. The driver fled the scene after the accident, but was allegedly assaulted by some irate villagers near Malabanjara village in Kothagudem mandal late in the night.
Six students died instantaneously while two others succumbed to injuries at a hospital in Kothagudem. Local shepherds rushed to the rescue of the children and saved many of them from drowning.
Rash and negligent driving, the narrow road abutting the stream and the poor condition of the vehicle proved fatal for the hapless children, all of whom belonged to families of weaker section. Police are investigating whether the cleaner was driving the bus.
The scene of accident presented a picture of gloom as school bags and plastic water bottles of the children were seen floating in the stream while grief-stricken parents wailed inconsolably over the bodies.
Rescue teams of Singareni Collieries were pressed into action. They lifted the school bus using a huge crane. District Collector Siddharth Jain and Additional SP Prakash Jadhav rushed to the scene and monitored rescue operations. Mr. Jain told The Hindu that water in the stream was being drained out using pumps to verify whether any bodies were trapped underneath. The dead have been identified as E. Pradeep, B. Santosh, D. Ganesh, R. Soujanya, Ch. Navya, G. Manikanta, M. Santosh and A. Shiva Varaprasad.
Ex gratia
Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy expressed shock and anguish over the accident and announced ex gratia of Rs.50,000 to the families of the deceased children and Rs.25,000 to the injured.
Probe ordered
Hyderabad Special Correspondent adds: Transport Minister Botcha Satyanarayana has ordered an inquiry into the accident and directed the officials to inspect all school vehicles carrying students for fitness and submit a report within 10 days.
Reacting to the accident, the Minister asked the Transport Commissioner to launch a drive with focus on the fitness of all school buses and heavy transport vehicles.
In separate statements, Telugu Desam president N. Chandrababu Naidu, CPI leader K. Narayana, Congress leader K. Chiranjeevi and Lok Satta president Jayaprakash Narayan expressed concern and wanted the government to take steps to prevent recurrence of such accidents.
