CHENNAI: A Class 7 student who was travelling on the footboard of an MTC bus allegedly died after he slipped and was run over by a rear wheel near the T Nagar bus terminus on Wednesday morning.
Police said K Saran, aged 11, was a resident of Velachery and studying in Class 7 in a private school in T Nagar. He usually takes the MTC bus to reach his school. "On Wednesday morning at around 8.50 am, he was travelling in MTC bus route number M9M plying from AGS officer's colony to T.Nagar. As the vehicle was nearing the bus terminus, he was spotted travelling on the footboard of the front door. The moment the bus entered the T Nagar bus terminus, Saran tried to get off the bus when he slipped and fell down and was run over by a rear wheel," said a police officer.
The passersby rushed Saran to a nearby private hospital where the doctors found the boy had already succumbed. Traffic came to a halt for more than 30 minutes due to the incident.
Police said Saran's father Kumar works as a businessman and his mother is a homemaker. It is learnt that he travelled to school by an MTC bus every day along with his friends.
Following the incident, the Pondy Bazaar traffic police have registered a complaint and have detained the bus driver Thirunayanasamandam and the conductor Senthil Kumar for further inquiry.
In a similar incident, a 14-year-old school student who was travelling on the footboard of an MTC bus died after he allegedly slipped off the bus at Chengalpattu in October 2018.
However, the MTC officials and the city police continue to spread awareness on the dangers involved in footboard travelling. They also advise the MTC crew not to allow footboard travelling, but school students somehow manage to continue travel on footboard especially during the peak hours.