Bapatla: 22 students injured in school bus mishap

Bapatla: Twenty-two students of a private school sustained minor injuries when the bus in which they were travelling swerved into a minor irrigation canal near Amruthalur in Bapatla district on Tuesday afternoon.

Amruthalur sub-inspector P. Suresh said after attending the Independence Day celebrations at the school located in Kuchipudi village, nearly 50 students aged between five to 15 years and studying from Classes I to X, boarded the bus for returning to their homes via Pedapudi, Peravalipalem and other villages.

Bus driver Pradeep alias Punnaiah attempted to overtake another bus of the same school. He lost control and the bus fell onto its side into the small canal without much water. Soon after the bus fell, the students started screaming for help.

Local villagers came to their rescue and also alerted local police and ambulance services. They took the injured students to a private hospital in Tenali. Two of them, including a Class X boy identified as Yogendra Narayana Raju, suffered an injury on his forehead. Doctors administered four sutures. A girl suffered an injury on her temple, which was also stitched up. All the students have been discharged after treatment.

Based on a statement Raju at the hospital by the injured Raju, police have booked a case against the bus driver on charges of rash and negligent driving.