Charge-sheet filed in Volvo accident at Palem

Citing faulty road engineering and lapses in bus body design as part of the reasons that resulted in the accident of Volvo bus at Palem in Mahabubnagar killing 45 passengers seven months ago, the Crime Investigation Department officials filed charge-sheet in the case in a court at Mahabubnagar.

A two-year-old kid and a pregnant woman were among the 45 victims charred to death in the gory accident occurred in the early hours of October 30 last, while it was coming from Bangalore to Hyderabad. Ten persons, including J.C. Uma Reddy, close relative of Congress leader and former Minister J.C. Diwakar Reddy, were arrested in the case.

Among the other arrested persons were, three of a family owning Jabbar Travels, which operated the bus, five of their staff members and Rahman of Diwakar Road Lines.

Charges were framed under 38 sections of different Acts against the accused. The bus carrying 50 passengers started from Bangalore. It hit the parapet wall of a culvert abutting the main road.

An iron pipe erected atop the culvert to act as railing broke and pierced into the fuel tank of the bus. While the fuel got splattered inside the bus, sparks flying from the battery compartment due to the collision ignited flames. By the time the driver noticed the flame and passengers cried for help, blazes engulfed the entire bus. While the driver jumped out, 55 passengers got burnt to death.

After examining the accident spot several times, the CID officials reconstructed the accident by travelling in a Volvo bus on the road. “The culvert parapet wall hand encroached into the alignment of the two-lane carriageway (leading to Hyderabad) and created unwarranted obstruction to the high-speed first lane,” the CID officials said in a press release issued on Saturday.

This defect contributed to the accident, they inferred. “Most of the interiors of the Volvo bus were made of PVC material and Vinyl Mats which are highly inflammatory substances,” the note said. The emergency exit doors were blocked by passengers’ seats in violation of Central Motor Vehicle rules, it said.

The bus manufacturers -Volvo Buses India Limited-, bus owners -Diwakar Road Lines- and bus operators -Jabbar Travels- endangered the lives of people, it stated.

The officials concerned of National Highway Authority of India and staff of Volvo company would be prosecuted, the investigating officer and DSP N. Murali said.