Chennai: Negligent driving by a government bus driver led to the death of a 44-year-old woman travelling in a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus in the city on Friday morning. The driver had sped through the speed-breaker inside the Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus (CMBT) in Koyambedu, which led to the woman’s head banging hard against the steel body of the bus. Another passenger was also injured in the accident, police said.
The deceased was identified as M. Sumathi. A resident of Bharatidasan Nagar in Perambulur, Sumathi works as an office clerk in the revenue department there. Preliminary investigations revealed that Sumathi was to be admitted to a hospital in Anna Nagar for treatment on Friday. “She was suffering from a bone ailment in the neck region and was to undergo treatment in the city for the same. Her mother and her brother were accompanying her,” said a police officer. The trio was travelling in the Trichy-Chennai bus (Reg no: TN 45 N 3762). The bus reached the terminus and the passengers were standing to alight from the bus when the driver sped through the speed breaker near platform no.1. With the impact, Sumathi, who was standing near the rear was lifted off the floor of the bus and her head hit the steel body of the vehicle. Kandhan (40), another passenger also suffered injuries. Sumathi suffered grievous head injuries and was moved to a hospital where she succumbed to her injuries. Personnel from the Koyambedu traffic investigation wing rushed to the scene and registered a case against government bus driver R. Jayaraman (55) of Veppampattu village in Perambalur district.
