Karnataka Bus Safety Urged After Fatal Accident: Authority Recommends Window Grills
The Karnataka State Police Complaints Authority (KSPCA) has written to the State Transport Department recommending the installation of iron safety grills on all State-run bus windows and stricter enforcement of anti-tobacco laws in public transport.
In a letter addressed to the Principal Secretary of the Transport Department, KSPCA member Mohan Kumar Danappa cited the recent death of a 17-year-old ITI student from Shirur village as a reason for immediate action.
The teenager, Fakiresh, was travelling in a North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) bus from Hubballi to Lakshmeshwar on July 1. According to reports, he leaned his head out of the window to spit gutka when a speeding tipper lorry struck him from behind, resulting in his death. The accident was registered at the Kundgol Police Station.
Mr. Danappa noted that the bus involved did not have iron safety bars on the rear-side windows. He pointed out that such accidents involving passengers leaning out of bus windows are reported frequently and called for preventive measures.
The KSPCA member requested the government to inspect all buses operated by the State’s Road Transport Corporations (RTCs) and make the installation of iron safety grills on windows mandatory to enhance passenger safety.
Additionally, he urged the Transport Department to strictly enforce existing anti-tobacco and anti-smoking laws in public buses. He recommended action against passengers found consuming gutka, tobacco, or smoking inside buses, including imposing the prescribed fine of ₹1,000.
