Close shave for 20 passengers as CTU bus overturns in Sec 17

A Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) electric bus carrying nearly 20 passengers overturned while negotiating a turn near the Sector 17 chowk — one of the busiest intersections in the city — this morning. Around five passengers sustained minor injuries and were shifted to the Government Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16 (GMSH-16).

The accident occurred around 10:15 am near the Parade Ground. Police teams reached the spot within minutes and pulled the passengers out of the vehicle.

According to the Station House Officer (SHO) of the Sector 17 police station, the driver suddenly lost control of the vehicle and it overturned. While the bus driver said the vehicle accelerated abruptly due to a technical fault, an eyewitness claimed otherwise. “The bus was being driven at high speed. While taking a turn, one of its front tyres hit the pavement and it overturned,” he claimed, accusing the driver of rash driving.

Police officials confirmed that no FIR had been registered as no passenger lodged a complaint. The CTU will conduct an internal inquiry and seek an assessment report from the company’s experts to determine whether a technical fault led to the incident.

Meanwhile, the authorities concerned assured that safety checks across the fleet of electric buses would be stepped up to prevent similar occurrences. “Passenger safety remains our top priority. No lapses will be tolerated,” a senior official from the CTU said.

3-member panel to probe mishap, driver sacked

The UT Transport Department has formed a committee to probe the incident, while the company, which is running the bus service, sacked the driver.

Pradhuman Singh, Director, Transport, said a three-member committee had been constituted to examine the causes that led to the accident and suggest ways to prevent such incidents in future.

He said the bus was being operated by Volvo-Eicher company on a “per kilometer” basis scheme. He had written to the company to terminate the services of the driver with immediate effect. Under this scheme, the driver belongs to the company and the conductor to the CTU. Taking swift action, the company sacked the driver.