24 schoolchildren among 28 hurt in early morning accident in Delhi

Twenty-four schoolchildren who were on an educational trip suffered injuries in an accident following a collision of four buses with three other vehicles at central Delhi’s Salimgarh flyover on Monday, police said.

There were 216 students in the four buses that “accidentally” collided with an autorickshaw, a car and a motorcycle. In all, 28 people, including three members of school staff and a civilian, were injured, they said.

The buses were hired by Government Secondary School – Bhalaswa Village, Government Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya – Khajoori and Government Boys’ Secondary School – C-Block Dilshad Garden. They were on an educational tour to the zoo and Akshardham, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Shweta Chauhan said.

The police received information regarding the accident around 11 am. When they reached the spot, they found a pileup of four buses, an autorickshaw, a car and a motorcycle, Chauhan said.

Another police officer privy to the probe said one of the bus drivers could not apply the brakes on time and lost control of the vehicle, leading to the collision.

Five boys from Government Secondary School – Bhalaswa Village, 10 girls from Government Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya – Khajoori and nine boys from Government Boys’ Secondary School – C-Block Dilshad Garden were injured in the accident. Three staff members, including a woman teacher, from Government Boys’ Secondary School – C-Block Dilshad Garden and a biker were also injured, Chauhan said.

A purported video that has been circulated on social media shows students escaping by jumping out of the buses through the windows while onlookers give them a helping hand.

The accident led to a huge traffic jam in the area with the onlookers and students making videos of the pile up. The impact of the accident was such that all the buses, car and the autorickshaw involved were damaged, a senior police officer said.

One of the onlookers said, “It was a narrow escape for the students. The area witnessed traffic congestion since the morning and the accident compounded the situation. We saw several PCR (Police Control Room) vans at the spot and the injured were taken to hospitals.”

LNJP Medical Director Dr Suresh Kumar told PTI that all the injured people except one student had been discharged after primary treatment.

“One of the students, an 11-year-old boy, sustained bone injuries and is under observation. An X-ray has been done,” he said.

Legal action is being taken accordingly, the police said.