CM announces compensation for Burdwan crash victims; checks on students who fell ill at I-Day event

Kolkata: Several school students participating the Independence Day programme fell ill on Friday morning and were rushed to SSKM, where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, after presiding over the event, visited to check on their condition.

Later in the day, Banerjee expressed grief over the death of 10 persons in an accident at East Burdwan and announced compensation, Rs 2 lakh each for the victims’ families, Rs 1 lakh for the grievously injured, and Rs 50,000 for the injured, while speaking to reporters after the customary tea party at the Governor’s House.

After meeting the students, who were taking part in a walk-past hosted by the School Education Depart-ment, Banerjee attributed the sickness to weather fluctuations, saying: “When there is a big event, the students are in tension. After the sudden spell of rain, it was hot and humid. They were given breakfast, but felt dehydrated.”

Banerjee also pointed to a psychological effect. “One of the girls collapsed, and seeing their friend col-lapse, others also fainted. Now they are absolutely all right. One of them, Fatima Sekhawat, was slightly more unwell, but she is doing better now. I spoke with them personally,” she said.

Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Verma and state Secretary for Information and Cultural Affairs also rushed to SSKM to ensure that the students, after their medical attention, were transported safely to their respective homes.

In the tragic Burdwan road accident, police sources said that the mishap occurred around 7 am on National Highway 19 near Fagupur, when a bus travelling at high speed from Tarakeswar in Hooghly towards Asan-sol rammed into a stationary lorry. The impact was so severe that the front portion of the bus was com-pletely mangled.

The bus was carrying nearly 60 passengers from Bihar, who had gone to offer puja at Tarakeswar. Locals alleged that the lorry, which should have been parked in the service lane, was standing on the main car-riageway, triggering the collision.

Police and local residents launched a joint rescue operation, shifting about 35 injured passen-gers to a nearby hospital, where 10 were declared brought dead. A probe has been initiated to determine the exact cause of the accident.