PMPML buses kill 4 in 8 days,activists blame administration

In eight days,from April 2 to 10,buses run by the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd have been involved in four fatal accidents.

In eight days,from April 2 to 10,buses run by the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd (PMPML) have been involved in four fatal accidents. In the past three months,PMPML buses have caused 17 deaths,drawing fire from civic activists who allege that the management of transport utility is not taking any corrective measures,neither the buses are being upgraded to prevent accidents.

Jugal Rathi,president,PMP Pravasi Manch,said most accidents take place due to people getting trapped in the gap between the bus floor and the road,i.e. the space between the two wheels. We either need low floor buses or dock guard (also called bottom guards) in the space to reduce that gap. But the matter is not taken seriously by the PMPML authorities. Also,the mirrors next to the drivers seat and the ones next to the exit gate are either absent or of the size of the ones used for two-wheelers. As a result,many a times the driver does not know if passengers are still getting off,leading to increased number of accidents.

Rathi said for the hired buses,no accidents records are maintained leading to lack of accountability. PMP Pravasi Manch and other activist groups have demaded that proper accident records be maintained,the results be made public and each accident should be inquired within a limited time frame.

Joint Managing Director of the PMPML Satish Kulkarni,however,refuted the allegations. We have mirrors in all our buses,we have not recieved any mirror-related complaints. As for the bus floor-road gap,we have 400 semi-low floor buses. Another 500 new semi-low floor buses will be added to the existing fleet under the JNNURM scheme, he said.

Asked about the bottom guards,Kulkarni said it was true that accidents in the case of old buses are due to a gap of two to three feet between bus floor and the road. They have been installed in all the 400 old buses in the city,he said. Due to maintenance related issues,they may not be there in some buses,but we regularly replace them. The replacement work is a continuous process. But we cannot generalise accidents as each accident is a matter of on the spot judgement, he added.

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