Contractor falls 12 feet while fixing LED lights, bus driver booked for hitting crane

Man suffered serious injuries in incident that took place on August 12 and was passed fit to give a statement to the police on August 18, following which a case was registered

A 26-year-old man suffered severe injuries after falling from a crane, when it was hit by a speeding bus, while fixing an LED light on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway on August 12. The police recorded the victim’s statement on Tuesday and registered a case against the driver of the bus run by a private operator.

The National Highways Authority of India has installed 3,500 LED lights in place of sodium vapour lights on a 27-kilometre stretch of the highway, from Delhi to Kherki Daula toll plaza. (ANI)

The police identified the victim as Jitender Kumar, a resident of Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, who works with a private company that fixes LED lights on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway.

Around 4.30pm on August 12, he was fixing a light when a speeding bus allegedly hit the vehicle the crane was connected to, causing him to lose his balance and fall 12 feet. He was taken to the Civil Hospital in Sector 10 and was declared fit to record a statement on Tuesday.

Sudhir Kumar, the station house officer of Sector 17/18 police station, said that they were informed of the incident by a colleague of the victim’s. “We sent a team to the hospital but he could not record his statement. On Tuesday, he narrated the incident and we have registered a case against the unidentified bus driver,” he said.

A case was registered under sections 279 (rash driving), 336 (damage to the road had endangered life and personal safety of commuters), and 427 (mischief causing damage) of the Indian Penal Code on Tuesday.

Kumar said they have recovered CCTV footage from the vicinity and are scanning the footage to identity the bus. The National Highways Authority of India has installed 3,500 LED lights in place of sodium vapour lights on a 27-kilometre stretch of the highway, from Delhi to Kherki Daula toll plaza, in the past three months.