[SIZE=15px]Shegaon: Nineteen passengers were killed and 15 injured when a state transport (ST) bus plunged into the Purna river while crossingKhiroda bridge in Sangrampur taluka of Buldhana district on Wednesday morning. The bus was going from Shegaon to Paturda. Most of the deceased were residents of Paturda or nearby villages. The incident occurred at about 10.30 am.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]Meanwhile, there is widespread discontent among ST employees of Shegaon depot as they held the depot manager, one Kantode, responsible for the death of bus driver Vyankat Daberao. They openly blamed Kantode when they went to the hospital in Shegaon for receiving Daberao's body. Sources in ST said that some employees had complained to Kantode about the poor condition of the bus three days ago but he did not take the bus off the road.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]Buldhana police said prima facie it seemed one of the tyres of the vehicle had burst when it was crossing the 200-metre long bridge, 12 km from Shegaon. The driver lost control of the bus and it plunged 35 feet below into the river. River had around nine feet water resulting in many passengers drowning.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]On hearing the cries of survivors, villagers present near the bridge, rushed to the help. However, 17 persons were dead on the spot due to severe injuries or drowning. The villagers informed the district administration. Ambulances and medical personnel were rushed from Shegaon. The injured were taken to Saibai Mote hospital in Shegaon for treatment. Of the 15 injured, 12 were in serious condition. The hospital authorities sent them to Akola district hospital. Two succumbed to injuries during treatment in Akola.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]The Buldhana district administration sent for a crane from Khamgaon. The bus was retrieved from the river after four hours of rigorous efforts.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]Deepak Kapoor, managing director of ST, rushed to Nagpur by flight and then to the site by road. "We will arrange for the best of medical treatment to those injured. ST will provide Rs 1 lakh each to the kin of deceased. We will also organize vehicles to transport the bodies," he said. Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan also announced an additional ex-gratia of Rs 1 lakh to the kin of the deceased from CM's relief fund.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]ST is yet to ascertain the cause of the accident and the officials were conducting an enquiry at the site till Wednesday evening. An ST official said the Khiroda bridge did not have a parapet which could prevented the bus from plunging into the river.[/SIZE]
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[SIZE=15px]A neglected bridge[/SIZE]
[SIZE=15px]Villagers living near the Khiroda bridge have blamed the government for not making the bridge safe for traffic. The bridge was constructed by the British in 1930. It's height is over 40 feet above the river bed. It does not have a parapet even though the traffic over the bridge is quite heavy. The bridge is 10 to 15 feet under water when Purna is flooded. Traffic comes to a halt many times in rainy season. The bridge will be submerged when the Jigaon reservoir is completed, villagers told the media.[/SIZE]