On Tuesday, a tragic accident occurred on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway in Ghaziabad, resulting in the death of six members of a family who were traveling from Meerut to a temple in Rajasthan. The accident took place when their SUV collided head-on with a speeding bus driving in the wrong direction. The bus, which had markings indicating it was on school duty, was actually being used to transport employees of a private company in Noida, despite previously ferrying students from a Noida school over a year ago. The details surrounding the incident have prompted further investigation.
According to Ramanand Kushwaha, the additional deputy police commissioner, the bus driver refueled with CNG in Delhi’s Ghazipur before driving in the wrong direction on the expressway. Kushwaha mentioned that if the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had alerted the authorities through their monitoring control room, the bus could have been stopped. However, there was no such alert, leading to a blame game between the NHAI and traffic police regarding the absence of timely intervention.
NHAI officials, who lacked authorization to speak to the media, revealed that their patrolling vehicles were deployed but possibly at a different location when the accident occurred. Video evidence indicated that the bus entered the wrong lane from Indirapuram, not Ghazipur, and traveled approximately seven kilometers before the collision. Transport enforcement department officials in Noida suggested that the bus may have taken the wrong lane due to diversions related to the Kanwar Yatra pilgrimage, an annual event for Shiva devotees.
The officials emphasized that the bus’s documents, including fitness and insurance, were valid. Buses like these sometimes transport both school children and staff of factories or companies simultaneously. NHAI officials reported that both the bus and the SUV were traveling at speeds of 90-100 km per hour.
The bus driver, who has been arrested, was fined ₹2000 for driving in the wrong lane. A first information report was being registered, and Kushwaha held the bus driver entirely responsible for the accident. He stated that two men, two women, and two children lost their lives, and the school bus had a Noida registration number.
Sanjay Yadav, a family member of the deceased, confirmed that his two cousins and their families were traveling in the SUV. Tragically, one cousin, his wife, and their two sons perished, along with the daughter and wife of another surviving cousin. The two injured individuals, aged eight and 36, were undergoing treatment, while the remaining eight passengers in the SUV were unharmed.
A video capturing the incident showed the bus colliding with the SUV as the latter attempted to avoid the collision.
