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Godsent! Haryana Roadways driver, conductor rescued cricketer Rishabh Pant
The bus was coming from Haridwar to Panipat when they saw the SUV hit the railings and found the injured cricketer inside it
: It was an ordinary morning for Haryana Roadways bus driver Sushil Mann and conductor Paramjit Singh when they saw an SUV coming from the opposite direction hit the railings of the divider on the Delhi-Roorkee highway in the dense fog near Narsan town around 5.20am on Friday.
Anticipating the worst, they stopped the bus, which was plying from Haridwar to Panipat, and approached the SUV. They found a critically injured man in the damaged vehicle, who introduced himself as Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.
They helped him to come out from the vehicle before it caught fire.
“He was bleeding as he had injuries on his head and face. There were no clothes on his body and he was shivering,” Sushil told HT over phone.
The duo borrowed a shawl from a passenger in the bus and covered him to keep him warm in the biting cold. They then called the ambulance and the police. They said that they kept talking to him until the ambulance reached and also asked him if anybody else was in the car but he said that he was driving alone.
The cricketer was returning from Delhi to his home in Haridwar’s Roorkee.
“When we were talking to him, he asked us to inform his mother from his mobile phone but her phone was switched off. We talked to him around 15-20 minutes until the ambulance reached,” Sushil said.
The bus driver said that they searched the car to check if anyone else was there and found a blue bag with a cash of around ₹ 8,000 and gave it to him in the ambulance.
Kuldeep Jhangra, general manager of Panipat depot, said that he feels proud of Sushil and Paramjit for this kind act. “Soon after they reached Panipat, I called them to my office and honoured them for the work they have done to save the cricketer’s life,” he added.
Principal secretary to Haryana transport department Navdeep Singh Virk also praised the efforts of Sushil and Paramjit. “Exemplary conduct and presence of mind by Haryana Roadways driver Sushil and conductor Paramjit from Panipat depot, who were the first at @RishabhPant17, accident site and helped him. Well done,” he tweeted.
