Mumbai: On Monday, at least ten people were left severely injured and one dead after a BEST bus crashed into a roadside divider on the Sion-Panvel Highway in Mankhurd. Eight injured were passengers inside the bus, one was a driver and another a conductor, while the deceased was a pedestrian.Bhaskar Raosaheb Kagade, a 65-year-old farmer from Osmanabad, had come to the city to visit one of his daughters and attend a family function. He was struck and killed by the BEST bus just as he was preparing to leave for Pune to meet his other daughter. Kagade is survived by his wife, a son, three daughters, a daughter-in-law, and several grandchildren.His son-in-law, Sachin Pawar, who is a history professor at a junior college, said, “How many more lives are buses going to claim? There were already a few accidents prior to this at the spot where the incident happened.”The driver of the bus, Banvari Shriram Prasad Sharma (51), has sustained minor injuries to his head; however, the conductor, Vaibhav Waghmare, has sustained head injuries as well as fractures. Both are admitted to Rajawadi Hospital. All the passengers were rushed to Shatabdi Hospital in Govandi, and almost all have sustained fractures. Dr Shubhangi Ghodke, in-charge of the hospital, said, “Seven out of the total eight patients have fractures in some or the other part [of their bodies]. All of them will require a long hospital stay. We had to refer one patient to Sion Hospital, he has hand fracture as well as nerve compression.”Many of the commuters were on their daily routine. For instance, like any other day, Lata Waghela (42), a Mankhurd resident, was on her way to Vashi market to buy some fruits and vegetables to sell them in the area as a hawker. Her son, Tushar, said, “My mother has been doing this for 10 years. She has a fracture, but her chest has been paining too. We are still trying to understand the full extent of her injuries. Who will compensate her for the loss of livelihood?”Surekha Jadhav, mother to 22-year-old Ankita Jadhav, who has sustained minor injuries, said, “We are fortunate she is not as badly hurt. Our children’s lives cannot be at risk like this when they are out. These are avoidable incidents.”
