15 injured as bus rams into stationary lorry

As many as 15 people received severe injuries when one of the two buses racing against each other rammed into a stationary lorry in Howrah’s Panchla area.

Police arrested the driver and two conductors of the bus which collided with the lorry.

“Those injured were rushed to the local hospital. Some of the injured are battling for their lives,” said a police officer.

The incident is a grim reminder of another recent accident in which a bus, while trying to overtake another bus, had overturned on the roadside shanties and injured around 50 people. The incident had occurred at Howrah’s Jagatballavpur.

Police said two buses were racing against each other and as they approached Howrah Town, one of the buses toppled over on the shanties causing severe injuries to about 50 people.

A speed braker on the road had caused the bus to overturn. The injured were taken to the local healthcare centre.

“There were passengers and drivers among the njured. They were critical and some of them were taken to the district hospital,” an official had said.

Rash driving has always been a concern for the Howrah police. They are trying to bring a sense of safety among road users with the campaign ‘Safe Drive, Save Life’.

In another incident, a passenger bus had fallen into a roadside canal at Birshibpur of Uluberia in Howrah a few days ago.

Around 30 people were injured, six of whom received critical injuries. Police said the driver of the Howrah Town-bound passenger bus suddenly lost control of the vehicle, after which it fell into the canal.

Locals, along with police personnel, had rescued the passengers trapped inside the bus. Police said the driver was drunk and he had been over-speeding.