MUMBAI: While BEST’s wet lease operators frequently come under scrutiny for accidents along crowded thoroughfares or technical glitches, on Saturday a quick-thinking driver and conductor projected a deviation from what has become an anticipated norm. Their attempt to save life was futile, but the duo’s response to the crisis may have partially reinstated people’s faith in the undertaking.
Following the passenger’s death, Gamdevi police took the driver’s and conductor’s statements and registered an accidental death report. Nayak’s body has been kept at the hospital’s mortuary where a post-mortem will be conducted. The exact cause of Nayak’s death will be established through the post-mortem examination and other police procedures. The incident comes amid increasing attention on the need for emergency response mechanisms on public transport operators, particularly in a densely populated city such as Mumbai where buses carry thousands of passengers every day.
The bus involved in the incident bore the registration number MH-03-CV-5797 and is operated by wet lease company SMTATPL from the Mumbai Central Depot Division.
“The incident has been recorded as a medical emergency, with no indication in the preliminary report that the passenger’s death was caused by the movement of the bus or any road accident,” said the BEST official.
As the conductor had undergone special training sessions such as CPR and other life saving measures, under the undertaking’s recent drive for drivers and conductors, he immediately checked on Nayak. After finding him unresponsive, he alerted the driver Prashant Sakpale, who understanding the medical emergency, diverted the bus to Nair Hospital, Mumbai Central, with concurrence of other travellers.
