Bus accidents in Kolkata have become a routine affair. Each new accident is more gruesome than the previous. Couple of hours ago a bus fell into a canal and bodies are still being fished out. Many lives lost either due to technical unchecked fault of the bus or due to momentary impulse of driver to speed and overtake.

The main cause in almost all accident cases is speeding and reckless driving. And in all the cases drivers and bus-owners get away quite easily. They are bailed out by the loop-holes in the system. The very next day they are back in their seats. Do they realize the value of a human life lost due to their sheer negligence? They are forever in a hurry. Also some strange commission system it seems compels them to overtake another bus on the same route. So they live in a time and money wrap of their own. Buses don’t stop at proper bus-stops. They don’t wait long enough for passengers to get in or get off safely. One look at the drivers, conductors and helpers of these private buses is enough to suggest they are an over-worked, under-paid and over-stressed community. They break all the traffic rules and rule the roads of Kolkata!! Can’t anything be done about it?
The least government can do is to make these drivers of public transport undergo compulsory counseling. They must realize that their negligent and reckless attitude can make them criminals. They may end up killing more and more people. They should be made aware that they are morally responsible for each person and child boarding their bus. The safety of bus passengers should be their main concern. A momentary impulse to overtake another vehicle and that too from wrong side can be fatal for all including the driver himself. Hundreds of lives are lost under the wheels each year. And unfortunately we all know that most of them could have been saved if only drivers were not negligent.