A serious safety lapse has come to light in Karnataka's public transport system after a Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) bus driver allegedly continued driving a passenger bus at night using the flashlight of a mobile phone after the vehicle's headlight failed to work. The incident on the Kalaburagi-Chincholi route has also raised a lot of concern about the safety of passengers, and the transport department has taken disciplinary action against the bus driver.
When the headlight failed on the night journey
According to reports, the incident took place on the night of July 4 when a KKRTC bus with passengers from Kalaburagi to Chincholi developed a technical fault that led to the failure of one of its headlights.
Driving at night without properly lit headlights is a safety hazard, especially during the monsoon season when visibility is already fading from rain and overcast conditions. Instead of stopping the car and consulting an engineer, the driver allegedly continued to drive.
Passengers said the driver was steering the bus with one hand and using the flashlight from a mobile phone with the other to illuminate the road ahead. The bus was driven in such conditions as passengers had seen, and videos were widely shared on social media.
Passengers Raise Safety Concerns
Many passengers were scared and worried about the safety of all aboard, and others expressed concern about the danger to everyone on board, one passenger said. The viral videos received widespread attention and raised many questions about vehicle maintenance and safety standards in the state-run transport corporation.
Department Takes Disciplinary Action
Following the circulation of the videos, the transport department launched an investigation into the incident.
Based on preliminary findings, disciplinary action has been taken against three staff members:
- The bus driver has been suspended for violating safety standards and endangering passengers.
- The technical supervisor has been suspended for not ensuring the vehicle was roadworthy before it was deployed.
- A technical staff member responsible for vehicle maintenance has been suspended for alleged negligence.
Hence, they said, the department decided to act because the incident was serious and could pose a hazard to passenger safety, for which they take responsibility.
Questions Over Vehicle Inspection
The incident has raised important questions about the inspection process followed before buses are allowed to leave depots. In standard operating procedures, headlights, brakes, tyres, and steering mechanisms are expected to be checked before every trip.
As a result, the authorities are now going to investigate how a bus with a lighting defect continued to run and whether that was a problem that developed during the journey or something that was overlooked during pre-departure inspections.
Need for Better Safety Measures
According to the transport department at the time, it had instructed all depots to enhance vehicle inspection procedures. Buses with technical defects should not be allowed to go on the line until all the repairs are done, it said.
The department will also carry out refresher training programmes for drivers and technical personnel, which will also enhance safety protocols and emergency response procedures.
The Kalaburagi-Chincholi incident serves to underscore that passenger safety is the top priority in public transport. We have initiated disciplinary action, but better maintenance checks and monitoring of the operation will have to be done in order to prevent a repeat of such incidents so that the public trust is restored in the system.
