Brake failure led to to Ambaji bus mishap?

The bus that overturned on Ambaji-Danta road on Monday afternoon, leaving 21of its nearly 80 passengers dead, may have suffered brake failure, said Banaskantha district collector Sandip Sagale. The victims were returning after a visit to the temple. Sagale said he had gone to visit injured passengers at Palanpur District Hospital on Tuesday when he met a survivor who was sitting beside the driver when the accident took place.

“He told me that the brakes of the bus had failed and that the driver had tried hard to control the bus but could not do so. When he tried to take support of the railing to stop the speeding bus, it overturned,” he said. The driver died in the accident. The collector has ordered the police to take action against those responsible for the accident.

When asked about culpability in the accident, officials said that the driver could have turned right and tried to stop the bus on the right hand divider instead of depending on the ghat railing. “Thankfully, the railing held firm, otherwise the bus would have gone down claiming many more lives,” said Sagale.

The police, however, could initiate action against tour operator Raoji Padhiyar of Borsad in Anand district. District officials said Padhiyar’s relatives too were travelling on the same bus. Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ajit Rajian could not be reached for comment.

Speaking about the condition of the injured, Dr Sanjay G Shah, incharge chief district health officer (CDHO) of Banaskantha said, “Only eight injured are still being treated for injuries at Palanpur District Hospital. Nine others who were severely injured had been referred to Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. One of them was critically injured.”