Palghar : In a tragic accident on the NH-8 (Mumbai–Ahmedabad highway), 11 passengers, including a minor girl, died on the spot when a mini bus collided head on with a luxury bus after breaking through a barricade and jumping over a divider in Dahanu at 3:40 am on Monday.
It is alleged that the driver of the Surat-bound mini bus (GJ 21 T 9789) fell asleep on the wheels and rammed the vehicle into the Mumbai-bound luxury bus (GJ 7 YY 4509).
Passengers in the luxury bus had a lucky escape & only 20 of them received minor bruises and scratches. The mini bus was carrying the Patel family while the Nadiad-Mumbai luxury bus had on board residents of Nadiad who were on a 3-day Mumbai darshan.
The mini bus was returning to Surat from the Mumbai international airport, where the Patel extended family had seen off a couple who had secured a permanent US visa. The injured along with both the drivers have been admitted to the Haria Hospital, Vapi, and are said to be stable and out of danger.
An eye witness, Saira Banu (45), who was travelling by the luxury bus, said that they had boarded the vehicle from Nadiad for a 3-day trip to Mumbai and had planned to visit the Haji Ali, the Maqdoom Shah Dargah, Juhu beach and look up the homes of film stars. Most of the passengers were asleep when a loud noise roused them and they realised that a mishap had taken place. Ashwin Patel, a relative of the deceased Dhawal Patel, said that they had hired two mini buses from Surat on Sunday night. Sources confirm that the driver was feeling drowsy but continued driving and eventually fell asleep on the wheels.
There were heart rending scenes at the Talasari rural hospital as the post-mortem of 11 bodies was conducted simultaneously. A case under Section 304 (a) (negligence) of the IPC and various sections of the Motor Vehicle Act has been registered against the mini bus driver.
The deceased were identified as Tushar Bharat Patel (32), Ammi Tushar Patel (30), Dhway Tushar Patel (11), Dhawal Pravin Patel (28), Bhumika Dhawal Patel (25), Manohar Jeverbhai Patel (58), Bhumi Patel (18), Danish Pravin Patel (30), Reena Danish Patel (27), Usanbhai Oura (55) and Jiya Dhawal Patel (5)
