CHENNAI: A 10-year-old boy was run over by an MTC bus while a youth was fatally knocked down in separate incidents in the city on Tuesday. The boy, D Shyam, a class 5 student was on his way to tuition classes in his bicycle when he met with the accident on Natesan road near Royapettah in the evening.
A resident of the slum clearance board quarters in P M Dargah, Royapettah, he was the the second son of Dakshiamurthy-Ammu couple, police said. His parents are flower vendors. Shyam and his elder sister Nithya (13) are students at a private school in Triplicane.
Shyam, who was on his bicycle, was first hit by an autorickshaw from behind and thrown off the ground and the MTC bus (No.12 G- plying between Anna Square and K.K.Nagar) trailing the cycle ran over the boy who was killed on the spot.
Cops from the Anna Square Traffic Investigation wing reached the scene and moved the body to Government Royapettah Hospital for post mortem. A case of causing death by negligent driving was booked against the bus driver Ravi Kumar.
Earlier in the day, a 20 year old youth proceeding in his two-wheeler was fatally knocked down by an MTC in Guindy.
Around 8.30 am, Balamurugan, a private firm employee was riding on CIPET Road, Guindy, when MTC bus (route no.570- plying between Koyambedu and Siruseri) hit his bike from behind, killing him on the spot. A native of Nagapattinam, Balamurugan lived at Padi and was working in Guindy, police said.
Meanwhile, transport employees Express spoke to attributed poor maintenance of fleet as the major reason for the accidents.
According to M Chandran, vice president, Tamil Nadu State Transport Employees Federation affiliated to CITU, “The crew are under severe stress as they cannot complete their duty within the stipulated time due to the prevailing traffic conditions in the city.”
When contacted, MTC sources said that MTC crew involved in the accident at Royapettah have been suspended. "The driver and conductor of the bus have been suspended," a senior official said while stressing that steps are being taken to reduce the number of accidents involving the State owned Transport Corporation fleet.
"The crew is being taught Yoga. This apart, drivers are undergoing vision tests to ensure that they are with good eyesight," the official added.