Lucknow: As many as 60 passengers were injured after a speeding luxury bus overturned on the Purvanchal Expressway on Tuesday, triggering panic and a massive rescue operation in Sultanpur’s Dhanpatganj area.The accident occurred around 8 am near milestone 108 when the private bus travelling from Ludhiana to Azamgarh with nearly 100 passengers on board lost control and overturned.Several passengers alleged that the bus was not being driven by the designated driver at the time of the accident. Instead, they claimed, the conductor (helper) was behind the wheel.Passengers including Saniya, Lal Bahadur, Ompal and Ramsurat stated that the bus had been moving erratically for some time.“The driver handed over the vehicle to the conductor and went to sleep. The bus went out of control due to speeding and overturned,” alleged Khushi and Shilpa, both residents of Azamgarh. They also claimed the bus was overloaded and earlier suffered a tyre puncture during the journey.The bus overturned suddenly, causing chaos and screams among passengers. Locals rushed to the spot and began rescue efforts, pulling out trapped passengers before emergency teams arrived.Most of the injured sustained minor injuries and were treated on the spot by medical teams from the Dhanpatganj Community Health Centre. However, 34 injured passengers were shifted to Kurebhar hospital for treatment, while at least 11-12 critically injured were referred to the district hospital and later to a medical college.District Magistrate Indrajeet Singh confirmed that immediate assistance was provided to the victims. “A private bus from Ludhiana met with an accident around 8 am. Thirty-four injured were sent to Kurebhar hospital, while 12 seriously injured were referred to a medical college,” he said.Preliminary findings suggest possible overloading and driver fatigue as contributing factors. Police said a detailed investigation is underway to ascertain the exact cause of the accident.The driver fled the scene after the accident, and efforts are on to trace and apprehend him.
