Two Bus Accidents Leave 35 Students Injured

Nalgonda: At least 35 students were injured in two separate accidents involving buses of their institutions on Friday. In one accident, 20 students were injured when a private school bus overturned at a canal at Ganeshpadu in Penuballi mandal of Khammam district. Elsewhere, 15 students of a private engineering college were injured when their bus overturned and fell into a ditch at Mondikunta in Ashwapuram mandal of Bhadradri Kothagudem district.

In the first incident, the bus, belonging to Sri Vivekananda Vidyalayam, Madullagudem, was carrying 107 students after school hours around 4.30 pm to drop them at Ganeshpadu, Banjaru, Vanga Muthyala Banjar, Marlakunta and Muthugudem. According to the police, the driver lost control of the bus, which overturned at the canal that had no water. Speeding is suspected to be the cause of the accident.

Police from the VM Banjar station rushed to the spot at Ganeshpadu and rescued the students. The injured were shifted to private hospitals in Penuballi in Khammam district and to a hospital in Tiruvuru in NTR district for treatment.

Minister Tummala Nageshara Rao spoke to district officials and enquired about the incident, directing them to ensure proper medical care for the injured students.

Transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar also spoke to district collector Anudeep Durishetti and ordered action against the school management. Expressing anger over the bus carrying students far beyond the permitted limit, he directed officials to ensure the best possible treatment for the injured and instructed the transport department to take steps to prevent such incidents in future.

In the second incident, the bus was carrying about 50 students of KLR Engineering College, Paloncha, from Manugur to Paloncha when the driver lost control, causing the vehicle to veer off the road and fall into the ditch. Ashwapuram police rushed to the spot and shifted the injured students to the Government Area Hospital at Bhadrachalam for treatment.