"Unfit buses will be seized, no playing with civilian lives": Telangana Transport Minister on Kurnool bus tragedy

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 24 (ANI): After at least 20 people lost their lives in the Kurnool bus fire accident, Telangana Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar Goud on Friday issued a stern warning that "unfit buses" which flout the rules set by the government would be seized, and added that there was no playing with the life of the citizens. 

"We have directed the transport authorities to seize any unfit buses to eliminate potential threats to life. We direct the transport people that buses will be seized if they don’t comply with the rules. There is no playing with the lives of citizens," Telangana Transport Minister Goud told ANI.

Offering condolences over the lost lives, Goud informed that all concerned government officials were at the scene of the accident.

“It is a very unfortunate incident. The Telangana government offered condolences on the incident. The government has also directed a probe into the same. All the concerned officials from the transport department, along with the district collector, are at the spot. The transport departments of Andhra, Telangana and Karnataka will form legislation to deter such incidents from happening in the future,” the minister said.

“The tragic incident has resulted in 20 deaths and injuries to many. The Telangana government is providing minute-by-minute updates on medical treatment. The Andhra Pradesh Minister and local officials are in contact and ensuring strict measures,” he added.

Andhra Pradesh Governor S Abdul Nazeer on Friday expressed deep anguish over the death of at least 20 people in the Kurnool bus fire accident.

The Bengaluru-bound bus from Hyderabad caught fire in Chinnatekur near Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh on National Highway (NH) 44 in the early hours of Friday.

According to a statement issued by the Andhra Pradesh Raj Bhavan, Governor Nazeer has directed the district authorities to provide necessary medical care to the injured passengers. The Governor offered his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family members.

Jayant Kushwaha, who was travelling from Hyderabad in a private bus that caught fire, on Friday, narrated the horrific ordeal, saying that he remained in disbelief after witnessing fire onboard as soon as he woke up.

Jayant woke up around 2:30 AM only to find himself and others trapped in a fire on board since the doors remained locked. He, along with two or three other passengers, attempted to break emergency windows to escape the bus.

“Around 2:30-2:40 AM, the bus stopped, and I woke up and I saw that the bus caught fire. I couldn’t believe that it was fire. I realised moments after that it was fire. Only two-three people were awake. We yelled fire and woke everybody up. The doors were locked. We couldn’t locate the drivers. We broke the emergency window as the main door was locked. We jumped out of the window. Many people jumped out of the bus by breaking the windows,” Jayant told ANI.

A private bus carrying 41 passengers in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool caught fire, killing at least 20 passengers after colliding with a bike that got stuck under the bus, officials confirmed on Friday.

Kurnool District Collector (DC) A Siri said that a total of 11 bodies have been identified, while the remaining nine bodies are yet to be accounted for. She said that the incident occurred in the early hours of Friday between 3:00 AM and 3:10 AM.

"There are a total of 41 members in the bus, including two drivers. A bike got stuck under the bus. After the accident, petrol leaked from the bike and caught fire. Of the 41 members, we have traced 21 passengers; they are safe. 11 dead bodies have been removed from the bus. 21 members have minor injuries and are undergoing treatment. We have to confirm about the remaining 9 bodies,” DC Siri said.

She further informed that the bus doors failed to open after the accident. However, the DC said, two drivers managed to escape from the fire.

“This incident happened late at night, and the passengers were sleeping. The bus wires were cut after the accident, and the bus doors didn't open after the accident. We're investigating the matter. The two drivers escaped from the fire. The passengers were coming from Hyderabad, and we're tracing the deceased family members. We've set up a control room for help,” DC Siri said.

A fire official pointed out that there were no safety hammers to break the glass after the accident.

"The bus collided with a bike, dragged it and caused the bike's petrol to leak, which led to a fire. There were no safety hammers to break glass after the fire accident. The bus driver didn't stop after the collision with the bike. The bus' diesel tank didn't catch fire, but the bus was totally damaged. We're investigating the matter,” the official said.  

The injured have been shifted to Kurnool Government Hospital for treatment. (ANI)