Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Aug 29: The accident that occurred on Thursday afternoon at Talapady on National Highway 66 has dealt a second devastating blow to the same family within six years. Sisters Khateeja and Nebisa, who lost their lives in the mishap, had earlier lost their mother and another sister in a similar road tragedy.
Bifathima and S Modin Kunji of Ajjinadka were parents to eight daughters and three sons. On July 9, 2018, at around 6 am, a horrific road accident at Uppala Nayabazar claimed the lives of Bifathima (67), daughter Naseema (30), and three others. The family was returning from Palakkad after attending the housewarming ceremony of another daughter, Ruqiya, when tragedy struck.
In Thursday August 28 accident, Bifathima’s two more daughters, Khateeja and Nebisa, along with two grandchildren, lost their lives.
The auto-rickshaw driver, Hyder Ali, was the current president of the Talapady K C Road Auto Rickshaw Drivers and Owners’ Association.
Manjeshwar MLA A K M Ashraf, Kasargod SP Vijay Bharat Reddy, and other senior police officials visited the accident site. A case has been registered against bus driver Nijalingappa Chalavadi, who has been taken into custody by Manjeshwar police.
CCTV footage revealed the horrific sequence. After ramming into an auto, the bus reversed and hit a man and a woman standing by the roadside—the woman leaning on a walker. The bus then broke recently installed barricades and rammed into another parked rickshaw, overturning it. The driver of that auto, Sameer, managed to jump to safety, while two others nearby ran and escaped unhurt.
The mangled remains of auto-rickshaws, scattered clothes and slippers, the walker of the woman, and broken road dividers bore witness to the magnitude of the accident. The bus had only a few passengers. Angered locals smashed its rear glass.
According to locals, the bus, which should have taken the service road, entered the highway illegally at Thuminadu, a no-entry zone. Vehicles heading from Kasargod towards the highway are supposed to take the service road at Thuminadu. Though highway access is not allowed from there, many buses reportedly flout this rule.
Locals accused KSRTC of neglect and rash driving, alleging buses often skip designated stops. Though the buses have hydraulic doors, they are seldom used. They also claimed that the accident bus was fitted with a retreaded, worn-out tyre, which may have caused loss of control.
Preliminary reports confirm rash driving as the cause. Of the two injured, one woman’s condition is critical. Authorities said an investigation is underway into the bus speed, technical issues, and how it entered the highway. Both the driver and conductor have been taken into custody.