Nine passengers were killed after a bus caught fire on the Yamuna Expressway in Greater Noida, with an FIR alleging that the driver and conductor ignored warnings about a burning smell and refused to stop the vehicle.
The FIR, registered at the Jewar police station on the complaint of Suneel Kumar, a resident of Hamirpur district, states that passengers repeatedly alerted the driver after noticing a burning smell. The driver and conductor allegedly refused to stop the bus, telling passengers, “If you want to die, then die; we won’t stop the bus.”
Kumar said he boarded the Raj Kalpana Travels bus from Kashmere Gate in Delhi around 9 pm on Wednesday. Around 30 to 35 passengers were travelling on the bus.
According to the complaint, the bus reached the 33-km mark on the Yamuna Expressway at around 11.30 pm when passengers noticed a burning smell coming from the driver’s cabin. The driver allegedly dismissed the smell as something common in the bus and did not stop to inspect it.
The complainant further alleged that the driver and conductor continued smoking bidis and cigarettes inside the cabin. Shortly afterwards, flames suddenly erupted near the driver's seat.
By the time the bus was stopped, the fire had spread and the vehicle was filled with smoke. Kumar said he and several other passengers managed to jump out, while some passengers remained trapped inside.
Chief Fire Officer Gautam Buddh Nagar Pradeep Kumar said the bus was travelling from Kashmere Gate in New Delhi towards Mahoba when it caught fire near the 33-km milestone under the Jewar police station area.
After receiving the information, senior police officers, local police personnel, a rescue tender, a fire tender stationed at Jewar Toll, four additional fire tenders and other fire service units reached the spot. The flames were subsequently brought under control.
More than 20 passengers were safely evacuated during the rescue operation. Police and fire service personnel entered the smoke-filled bus and found nine people dead. The victims died due to burning or suffocation, according to the fire officer.
A preliminary investigation found that the fire may have started because of a spark or blast in the bus's air-conditioning system. The fire then reportedly ignited engine lubricant oil, allowing the flames to spread rapidly.
A passenger who survived the incident recalled that she had been asleep when someone started banging on the bus door. When she woke up, the bus was surrounded by people and filled with smoke.
She said she left all her belongings behind and did not even have time to put on her shoes. She grabbed her phone and escaped from the vehicle amid intense pushing and shoving. According to her, someone eventually pulled her out of the bus.
The driver and conductor have been arrested. Jewar police have registered a case against them under provisions relating to culpable homicide.
Bus had 19 pending challans worth Rs 1.75 lakh
Details available on a government database show that the bus had 19 pending traffic challans amounting to around Rs 1.75 lakh.
The challans related to several alleged violations of traffic and motor vehicle regulations, including offences involving an underage driver, unauthorised retrofitting, fuel modification and permit-related requirements.
One challan issued in January this year was linked to an underage driver who was allegedly found operating the bus near the Delhi-Noida border despite being below the prescribed age.
The vehicle's registration certificate listed its colour as black, while the bus involved in the fire was painted yellow and white. This indicated a discrepancy between the vehicle's official records and its appearance.