Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Feb 16: Seven students were injured after a fish-laden Canter lorry crashed into the rear of a private school bus at Kapikadu on National Highway 66 near Ullal, sparking panic among parents and fresh outrage over highway safety lapses.
The accident occurred when the school bus had pulled over along the edge of the highway to pick up students and was proceeding towards Talapady. A Canter transporting fish from Goa to Kerala reportedly sped in from behind and rammed into the bus with considerable force. The impact was so intense that the rear seats of the bus were ripped off.
Preliminary information suggests that the driver of the Canter, identified as Sanjeeva, a native of Kundapura, was allegedly drowsy at the wheel at the time of the collision, leading to the mishap.
Four boys and three girls travelling in the bus sustained minor injuries and were immediately shifted to a private hospital in Thokkottu. Doctors treated them and declared them out of danger. However, one more student suffered a serious injury to the leg and has been admitted to K S Hegde Hospital in Deralakatte for further treatment.
With examinations currently under way, there were 24 students on board the bus when the accident took place. The Canter driver also sustained minor injuries and received treatment at a hospital in Thokkottu.
News of the crash spread quickly, sending anxious parents rushing to the hospital. Personnel from the Mangaluru South Traffic Police Station visited the spot and have launched an investigation into the incident.
Meanwhile, local residents lashed out at the highway authorities, pointing out that even a decade after the Nantoor–Talapady stretch of NH-66 was widened, adequate service roads have not been provided.
“School buses and private vehicles are forced to halt along the main carriageway to pick up passengers, while heavy goods vehicles continue at high speed,” residents alleged, adding that the lack of proper service roads has resulted in frequent accidents along the busy corridor.