BENGALURU: Nine students were injured when a school bus toppled in the middle of the road on Thursday after the driver lost control of the vehicle while trying to impress his passengers by driving without holding the steering wheel.
Another nine children and an aayah escaped with minor bruises. The bus belongs to Vidyashilp Academy, located in Yelahanka, and the accident took place around 12.20 pm on Jakkur Main Road.
The injured have been identified as Aditya Murali (8), Bhuvan (7), Smruthika (7), Ardhamani (7), Hitha (9), Priyanka (7), Niharika (7), Adwaith (11) and Shreyas (11). They were on their way to their homes in Jakkur, Sahakar Nagar, Kalyan Nagar, Hegde Nagar and K Narayanapura.
According to the police, driver Vijendra was heading towards Hegde Nagar when he took his hands off the steering wheel to impress the boys sitting in front.
Vijendra immediately lost control of the bus, which veered off course and rammed into the road median. The bus toppled in the middle of the busy road. There were 18 students inside, apart from aayah Devi who was standing close to the door.
Passersby took the injured to a private hospital in Sahakar Nagar. Luckily, there were no other speeding vehicles on the road. One of the students said Vijendra had jumped a signal near the Yelahanka flyover and had been constantly talking to the boys in front while driving.
According to hospital authorities, most of the students suffered injuries to their face and nose, but were discharged around 2.30 pm.
Yelahanka traffic police arrested Vijendra and registered a case of negligence against him.