Another Life lost

Youth killed by bus driver
A STAFF REPORTER

A minibus driver in a hurry mowed down a young passenger who had just alighted from the vehicle and was crossing the road.

The bus on route number 39 (Bhattanagar-Esplanade) had stopped at Joramandir, on Aurobindo Road in Howrah, around 6.45am for the youth to get off. But the driver didn’t wait for him to get to the other side.

“His eyes were on the rear-view mirror instead of the road. He saw another bus (Howrah Belgachhia-Salt Lake) approaching and didn’t even wait to check whether someone was in the way,” police quoted one of the passengers as saying.

The victim was crushed beyond recognition under one of the front wheels.

Some youths chased the racing bus (WB-19A 3752) on motorcycles and stopped it at Bandhaghat More, around 100 metres from the accident site.

The driver and the conductor, however, managed to flee, leaving residents to give vent to their anger by stoning the vehicle and then setting it ablaze.

A team from Golabari police station did little to stop the mob fury, witnesses said. Two fire-tenders doused the flames after the crowd dispersed.

Gurucharan Chatterjee, a resident of Salkia, said he “felt sick” after witnessing Monday’s accident on Aurobindo Road.

“I was shopping when this happened. I returned home immediately. How many more people have to die for these rogue bus drivers to be reined in?” he wondered.

Binoy Bhushan Acharya, a lawyer, said accidents like these would continue to occur as long as hawkers and not pedestrians were given right of way on pavements.

“We have newly paved footpaths on both sides of this road. But as everyone can see, these have been already encroached on. Where will pedestrians go?”

According to police records, three persons have died and 10 have been injured, five of them critically, in accidents on Aurobindo Road in the past year.

The youth is the third victim of rash driving in four days in the twin cities. A young mother taking her son home and a retired BSNL employee were run over by speeding private buses while getting off autorickshaws on Diamond Harbour Road on Friday morning.

Another young life snuffed out
while our W B Government looks the other way.
It cannot take action against the erring drivers because of their unions and also the Government depends upor them to bring the crowds during processions.
They only take action if one of their kind is affected.
Our Sports minister, Sunhash Chakravarty, who wears many hats is present;y too busy in acquiring the maidan from the army so that he can deface it beyond recognition.

Radheshyam