School open on Eid, key bus certificate expired: Lapses exposed in Haryana accident that killed 6 students

Tragedy struck near Unhani village in Haryana's Mahendragarh on Thursday morning as a school bus belonging to a private school overturned, claiming the lives of six children and leaving 15 others injured. According to police officials, the fatal accident occurred when the driver lost control of the overspeeding bus and rammed the vehicle into a tree, causing it to overturn.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences over the accident and prayed for the "speedy recovery of the injured."

"The bus accident in Mahendragarh, Haryana is extremely painful. My condolences are with all the families who have lost their children in this accident. Along with this, I wish for the speedy recovery of all the injured children. Under the supervision of the state government, the local administration is engaged in providing all possible help to the victims and their families," PM Modi posted on X.

Read: Schools to be held responsible if drivers found drunk: Haryana minister after bus accident

Here are the latest developments on the school bus accident:

• Eyewitnesses said the driver was allegedly intoxicated at the time of the incident. The police also said that the preliminary investigation into the incident suggested the driver was driving the bus under the influence of alcohol.
• Senior police officials disclosed that the bus had been operating with an expired fitness certificate, dating back six years to 2018.
• Pradeep Kumar, Assistant Secretary of Road and Transport Authority, was suspended with immediate effect as he failed to check vehicles plying on the road without valid documents.
• State transport minister Aseem Goel ordered a comprehensive fitness check of all school vehicles across the state. He condemned the gross negligence exhibited by the school owners and announced the formation of an inquiry committee to investigate all aspects of the incident.
• Goel said the bus involved in the accident was fined recently as it did not have certain documents and the fact that it was still being used was a clear lapse on the part of the school authorities. "We had challaned the bus for ₹15,500 due to a lack of documents, but clearly, a lapse of the school authorities has been found," Goel said.
• Questions have also been raised about the school being open despite a holiday declared for Eid-ul-Fitr. Education Minister Seema Trikha said the biggest lapse was that the school was open on a holiday. A show-cause notice has been issued to the school, along with several others that defied the holiday declaration.