Lucky escape for 40 as bus narrowly misses train collision

Dharwad: As many as 40 passengers, travelling in a KSRTC bus narrowly escaped death due to the presence of mind displayed by bus driver Shabbir Mattesavwale.

The incident occurred on Thursday when the bus, which was moving towards Karnatak University was crossing a manned level crossing near Srinagar Circle here. As the bus was passing through the railway gate, that was kept open one of the passengers noticed a train hurtling down the tracks.

As the passengers started screaming, Shabbir maintained his composure and accelerated the speed of the bus despite the presence of road breakers. The train missed hitting the bus in a whisker of time and all 40 passengers on board heaved a big sigh of relief. They all thanked Shabbir for saving their lives. 

The incident evoked sharp criticism from the bus passengers who alleged negligence on part of railway authorities and even registered a complaint at Dharwad Railway Station.

Meanwhile, the staffer posted at the railway gate said that he had not received any signal about the arrival of the train, and hence had kept the gates open.  At the same time, the loco pilot of the train was reportedly running the train without blowing the horn.