India
oi-Ashish Rana
Family members of those killed in the Yamuna Expressway sleeper bus fire reached the Sector 94 mortuary in Noida on Friday, facing the difficult task of identifying the victims. Police have so far established the identities of six of the nine people who lost their lives.
A sleeper bus fire on the Yamuna Expressway Wednesday night killed nine passengers, with families struggling to identify charred bodies; police identified six victims and arrested three crew members, finding the bus had 19 challans totaling Rs 1.75 lakh.
Charred Bodies Make Identification Difficult
The bus was on its way from Kashmere Gate in Delhi to Mahoba in Uttar Pradesh when it caught fire at around 11.20 pm on Wednesday near the 33-km milestone of the Yamuna Expressway.
The blaze claimed nine lives, while the condition of the bodies has made it difficult for grieving relatives to identify their loved ones.
Among those at the mortuary was Sarvagya, son of Rekha Bhardwaj, an injured passenger who survived the incident. Rekha had been travelling with her husband Devendra Sahay Bhardwaj, who died in the fire.
Sarvagya said his father, a retired teacher from a university in Hisar, Haryana, and his mother were travelling to Mahoba to attend the last rites of his grandmother.
Siblings Identify Family Members After Hours
Another family, siblings Shivam and Nancy, spent hours at the mortuary after learning about the bus fire. They eventually identified the bodies of their mother and brother after considerable difficulty and were seen consoling each other while waiting for officials to allow them to complete the formalities.
In another case, Ayushi, the granddaughter of one of the deceased, identified the body with the help of an anklet that had been gifted by her son. The incident highlighted the difficulty faced by families in identifying the victims because of the extensive burns.
Police Identify Six Deceased, Arrest Three
Police have identified six of the deceased as Shruti Rawat (31), a resident of Chhatarpur in Madhya Pradesh; Saroj Gupta (52) and Mayank Gupta (28), both residents of Mughalpuria Bazar in Rath, Hamirpur; Devendra Sahay Bhardwaj (60), a resident of Chandra Nagar village in Hisar, Haryana; Har Sharan Gupta (55), a resident of Balaji Palace in Rajendra Nagar under Orai police station in Jalaun district; and Usha Devi (65), a resident of Main Road, Muskura, Hamirpur.
Police have arrested two drivers and a conductor in connection with the incident. The drivers have been identified as Pawan and Yogesh Dixit, both residents of Kanpur Dehat, while the conductor has been identified as Rohit, also a resident of Kanpur Dehat.
During interrogation, the accused told the police that they were travelling from Kashmere Gate to Mahoba on Wednesday night. The accused allegedly abandoned the vehicle and fled after it suddenly caught fire.
An FIR has been registered under BNS Sections 281 (rash driving), 125(b) (endangering life), 105 (culpable homicide), among others, police said.
Bus Had 19 Challans Worth Rs 1.75 Lakh
Rajesh Mohan, a Public Transport Officer with the Gautam Buddh Nagar Regional Transport Office, told PTI that the bus, bearing registration number BR32PA8647, had accumulated fines totalling Rs 1.75 lakh through 19 challans.
The bus is operated by Raj Kalpana Travel Agency of Madhya Pradesh but is registered in Madhubani, Bihar, the official said.
Additional District Magistrate Ajeet Kumar Singh said on Thursday that the fire was caused by a short circuit, adding that there were 35 passengers onboard and nine people died.
The injured passengers were provided first aid before being transported to Mahoba in a special vehicle, Singh said.
