Five die as bus overturns near Bangalore

Five people, including a pregnant woman and a six-year-old boy, were killed on Monday when a Volvo bus in which they were travelling overturned after hitting a median on NH-4 near Hoskote in Bangalore Rural district.

The bus, belonging to Rajesh Travels, was on its way to Bangalore from Nellore, via Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh. Around 30 people were injured in the accident, which occurred around 5:15 am near MVJ Hospital, about 40 km from Bangalore. Driver fatigue and rash driving are said to be the reasons for the accident.

The deceased were identified as Anusha (24), Vijay Kumar (37), Prasad (32) and Pradip (30), all employed with private firms in the City, besides six-year-old Manas Kumar. Pradeep sustained a serious head injury and died at Hosmat hospital here, while the rest died on the spot, police said.

Vijay Kumar was working with Wipro in Nigeria. He had come to India on a vacation and went to Nellore, his hometown, to celebrate Sankranti with his family. He was on his way to Bangalore. His wife Padmaja, daughter Akshaya (4) and son Adi (2) were critically injured. Another victim, Anusha, was pregnant. Her husband Srikanth, who works in Bangalore, was seriously injured.

Thomas Chandy, director of Hosmat, said: “Two patients, Uma Mahesh and Lakshmi, were admitted to ICU as they suffered serious injuries while Neehar Reddy, who has a left elbow dislocation, is undergoing treatment.”

According to the Hoskote police, there were 49 passengers on the bus, along with two drivers and a cleaner. Most of the passengers were from Nellore and on their way to Bangalore.

The injured were rushed to MVJ Medical and Research Hospital in three ambulances.  
Driver B S Venkatappa, the spare driver and the cleaner were also injured. In a statement to the police, Venkatappa said he rammed into the median while trying to avoid hitting a stray dog. The police, however, said most of the passengers complained of rash driving.