Conductor falls off Trichy city bus along with seat

TRICHY: A Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus conductor suffered minor injuries after the seat he was sitting on got detached from vehicle’s floor and fell on the road along with him on Tuesday evening.

The incident was shared widely on social media platforms to criticise the safety of government buses.

However, TNSTC Trichy downplayed it by stating that the conductor accidentally slipped from the city bus.

The injured conductor has been identified as A Murugesan, 54, who is attached to TNSTC’s Dheeran Nagar bus depot.

On Tuesday evening, Murugesan was on duty in a city bus connecting KK Nagar with Srirangam. While approaching the SBI Main Road near Central bus terminus, a passenger seat adjacent to the rear entrance, where the conductor was sitting, got detached and fell on the road. He also fell on the road. The conductor suffered minor injuries.

The bus was said to be around 13 years old. There were only four passengers on board. They were made to board another TNSTC bus.

“Buses that have completed either nine years in service or operated for over 12 lakh kilometres must be phased out. But TNSTC Trichy continues to operate such old buses. Even now, instead of replacing the dilapidated bus, our management initiates action against the workers for lapses,” said a transport corporation worker under the condition of anonymity.

Other transport workers claimed that buses used by TNSTC for Trichy city’s urban operations were unsafe for the passengers and inferior in comfort when compared to private city buses.

“We are investigating the incident, but the conductor did not fall off the bus along with the seat. He slipped from the footboard,” a TNSTC official said.