Karnataka transport minister Ramalinga Reddy orders safety audit of state-run buses
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister Ramalinga Reddy has directed the managing directors of the four state-run road transport corporations to conduct a safety audit of their buses in the wake of the recent bus accident in Kurnool that claimed 20 lives.
He also instructed officials to undertake a review of the renewal and maintenance of all buses.
The directive applies to vehicles operated by the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) and North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC).
In a letter dated October 28, the state transport minister described the Kurnool accident as "deeply tragic".
"In this context, safety systems in all transport corporation buses across the state must be reviewed," he said.
Recalling a similar accident near Haveri district during his previous tenure as transport minister, when a private bus caught fire killing several passengers, Reddy said the incident had prompted a state-wide safety drive.
He said the campaign was launched to ensure that around 50,000 vehicles—including transport corporation buses, contract carriage buses, private tourist buses, tempo travellers and school vehicles—were fitted with functional emergency exit doors.
"During that campaign, several deficiencies were identified, and the installation of emergency exits was made mandatory," the letter stated.
Reddy further directed officials to maintain strict vigilance to ensure that no easily inflammable or explosive materials are transported along with commercial goods or luggage on buses.
He said all air-conditioned buses must be equipped with hammers to break windows in case of emergencies, and that no person should be allowed to sleep or rest in the luggage compartment area.
"A review must also be conducted regarding the renewal and maintenance of buses. If any lapses are found in these aspects, strict action should be taken without leniency against those responsible," he added.
Stressing that passenger safety remains the top priority, the minister said no compensation can make up for the loss of human life.
"Therefore, I have directed that teams be immediately formed to conduct a safety audit of buses and take appropriate action accordingly," Reddy said.
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Screenwriter Salim Khan on ventilator support and stable, say doctors
Mumbai (PTI): Veteran screenwriter Salim Khan suffered a brain haemorrhage which has been tackled, is on ventilator support as a safeguard and stable, doctors treating him said on Wednesday, a day after he was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital here.
The 90-year-old, one half of the celebrated Salim-Javed duo which scripted films such as "Sholay", "Deewar" and "Don" with Javed Akhtar, is in the ICU and recovery might take some time given his age.
"His blood pressure was high for which we treated him and we had to put him on a ventilator because we wanted to do certain investigations. Now the ventilator was put as a safeguard so that his situation doesn't get worse. So it is not that he is critical," Dr Jalil Parkar told reporters.
"We did the investigations that were required and today we have done a small procedure on him, I will not go into the details. The procedure done is called DSA (digital subtraction angiography). The procedure has been accomplished, he is fine and stable and shifted back to ICU. By tomorrow, we hope to get him off the ventilator. All in all, he is doing quite well," he added.
Asked whether he suffered a brain haemorrhage, the doctor said, "Unko thoda haemorrhage hua tha, which we’ve tackled. No surgery is required.
As concern over Khan's health mounted, his children, including superstar Salman Khan and Arbaaz Khan, daughter Alvira, and sons-in-law Atul Agnihotri and Aayush Sharma, have been seen outside the hospital along with other well-wishers. His long-time partner Akhtar was also seen coming out of the hospital.
Khan, a household name in the 70s and 80s, turned 90 on November 24 last year. It was the day Dharmendra, the star of many of his films, including "Sholay", "Seeta aur Geeta" and "Yaadon Ki Baraat", passed away.
Hailing from an affluent family in Indore, Khan arrived in Mumbai in his 20s with dreams of stardom. He was good looking and confident he would make a mark in the industry as an actor. But that did not happen. And then, after struggling for close to a decade and getting confined to small roles in films, he changed lanes.
He worked as an assistant to Abrar Alvi and soon met Akhtar to form one of Hindi cinema's most formidable writing partnerships. They worked together on two dozen movies with most of them achieving blockbuster status.
Other than "Sholay", "Deewar" and "Don", Khan and Akhtar also penned "Trishul", "Zanjeer", "Seeta Aur Geeta", "Haathi Mere Saathi", "Yaadon Ki Baarat" and "Mr India".
