MSRTC driver suffers stroke while driving,dies

A Maharastra State Road Transport Corporation bus driver from Swargate depot suffered a stroke and died while he was driving a Pune-Borivali bus with over 30 passengers late on Saturday,near Sion in Mumbai.

A Maharastra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus driver from Swargate depot suffered a stroke and died while he was driving a Pune-Borivali bus with over 30 passengers late on Saturday,near Sion in Mumbai. The bus collided with a divider after the driver fell off his seat,but no passenger was seriously injured in the incident.

The driver,Chandu Bodake (55),had been employed with the Swargate depot for over 10 years now. A resident of Valhe village near Saswad,Bokade left the Swargate depot at 5 pm with the Pune-Borivali Asiad bus. Around 9 pm,when the bus was at the Maitree Chowk in Chembur,Mumbai,he suffered a stroke.

No passenger suffered any serious injuries during the incident. I spoke to a few passengers and the conductor who had called me immediately after the incident , said Vijaykumar Diwate,depot manager,Swargate. He,however,claimed that Bodakes medical check-up had not indicated any heart ailment. His blood pressure and sugar levels were normal, said Diwate.

The incident highlights the issue of fitness of the MSRTC drivers. Medical check-ups of the drivers had shown that 20 per cent of them suffer from hypertension and cardiac ailments. The MSRTC undertook the check-ups one of its drivers,Santosh Mane,on January 25 hijacked a bus and drove it erratically,killing eight persons and injuring 28.

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