Cops catch drunk bus driver, avert tragedy

A possible tragedy was averted by the traffic police when they intercepted a luxury bus carrying 25 passengers at Chunabhatti on Monday. The driver of the bus was drunk.

A traffic police team from Matunga traffic division was conducting a special drive during holi, Sujata Patil, senior inspector of Matunga traffic division, said, "The drive has been going on for three days. We started the drive around 7am to catch those driving under the influence of alcohol. We spotted this Dolphin luxury bus around 12 noon and intercepted it. A constable went to the driver and asked him to get down."

According to the police, the driver, identified as Vijay Pisal, 42, could barely stand on his feet and he was talking incoherently. "His breath analyser reading was well above the permissible limit. I went and spoke to the passengers and told them that they were risking their lives," added Patil.

Pisal, is a resident of Bhandup, was penalised. According to the law, he will now have to produce himself in the court.

Several families from Tardeo, including women and children, were travelling to Nashik to attend an engagement ceremony.

Patil said that they called up the Dolphin travel office, spoke to the owner and reprimanded him. The office sent another driver to continue the journey. However, the new driver had to go through a breath analyser test before taking the wheels.

"I am going to send a notice to the Dolphin office for being so reckless. Since a lot of drivers go on vacation during this period, anybody is hired. The road towards Nashik passes through several ghats. Had this man not been caught, there was a possibility that he could have lost control and many people, including himself, would have been killed," Patil added.