Minister drives bus, hits auto

Fisheries Minister Anand Asnotikar on Monday rammed a NWKSRTC bus into a goods carrier, during the launch of the bus in Karwar on Monday. 

The minister, after inaugurating the services on Karwar-Hassan and Karwar-Hubli-Manipal routes, volunteered to drive the bus to a short distance. Even as the gathering watched, the minister crashed the bus into a stationary goods auto. The painting on the new bus peeled off. 

An NWKSRTC staffer said the minister was not supposed to drive the vehicle without a driving licence. 

“If any of the drivers had committed the same mistake, they would have been fined Rs 20,000,” he told Deccan Herald.

District statusThe minister, later addressing the gathering, said the Uttara Kannada district was large and could be divided into two. It is not possible for one district in-charge minister to ensure development of Uttara Kannada district which has 11 taluks, said Asnotikar, who is also the district incharge minister.