Bus mishap under joint panel lens

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Cuttack: A day after a luxury bus fell off Mahanadi bridge killing a dozen passengers and injuring over 40 others, Jagatpur police Wednesday registered a case in this connection.
The police registered the case under Sections 279, 337, 338 and 304 (A) of the IPC on the basis of statements of eyewitnesses and an FIR filed by Kulamani Behera of Toral in Jagatpur.
“Bus driver Khageswar Muduli has been made a party to the case. The bodies of 10 passengers have been handed over to their respective families after autopsy,” said deputy commissioner of police Akhileshvar Singh.
Meanwhile, a joint official team has been constituted to look into all aspects of the mishap. Officials from the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), state Transport Department and police have been included in the panel. “The joint committee would start probing the incident Thursday,” said a source.
Altogether 34 injured passengers are now being treated at the disaster ward of SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack while six have been admitted to the ICUs. The condition of three injured passengers is stated to be critical.
Sources, meanwhile, claimed the Bhubaneswar-bound AC coach met with the mishap after it ran over the carcass of a buffalo on the bridge Tuesday evening. “The bus driver could not see the carcass. The vehicle fell off the bridge after its driver lost control over the wheels,” said a source.
However, Jagatpur police in-charge Biranchi Narayan Pati claimed the bus fell into the riverbed after it hit a stray buffalo on the bridge. “We are yet to trace the owner of the buffalo,” he said. Preliminary investigations have confirmed that the bus was travelling at a speed of around 100 km per hour.
“We believe the bus was travelling at 70 kmph when it met with the mishap. But, the speed limit on the route is 50 kmph,” said Cuttack regional transport officer Dipti Ranjan Patra.