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Class-8 girl, conductor killed as school bus overturns in Ambala
The bus was 100 metres from school when it overturned, leaving 2 dead and 33 students injured,
Ambala A Class-8 girl and the bus conductor were killed, while 33 students were injured, after a bus of NCC Public School overturned near Panjokhra village on the Ambala-Naraingarh road on Friday morning.
Police said the accident occurred barely 100 metres from the school building after the driver allegedly lost control of the bus.
The deceased have been identified as Kanika, 13, of Kaleraheri village, and Ravinder, 35, resident of Ambala City. Kanika was to turn 14 on February 18.
The bus driver sustained serious injuries, and was referred to Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh.
Ambala chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Vinod Gupta said Kanika and Virender were brought dead at the Ambala civil hospital. “Of the 33 other students, 29 were discharged after first aid. The remaining four students are under treatment, but out of danger,” he added.
Haryana health minister Anil Vij visited the civil hospital to oversee the students’ treatment, and said Ambala additional deputy commissioner (ADC) RK Singh had been asked to probe the accident.
Onlookers said the bus was overloaded, and transporting 40 students. Kanika’s father Anil Kumar alleged that parents had apprised the school administration of overloading in school buses, and the management had promised to bring in more vehicles. But no action was taken.
He alleged that a new driver was driving the bus, while the regular driver was functioning as the bus conductor.
School trustee Virender Kumar claimed that a cyclist suddenly emerged from the nearby fields, and the bus driver lost control of the vehicle in an attempt to save him, adding that an inquiry will be conducted.
Sheetal Bimbra, a teacher at the nearby Mind Tree School, said she was driving behind the car when it overturned. “I took seven injured students, including Kanika, to the civil hospital in my car. She was breathing when we put her in the car,” she claimed.
Baldev Nagar station house officer (SHO) Rajneesh Yadav said they were investigating the matter before registering a case.
(The story has been updated)
