A cleaner died and two children sustained injuries after a speeding school bus carrying 34 children brushed against barricades installed by Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Development Authority (MMRDA) on Western Express Highway in Goregaon (East).

Bus driver Ramjit Gaud, 54, was arrested and booked for rash and negligent driving. The Vanrai police said the incident took place at around 6.30am on the northbound stretch of the WEH while the bus was on its way to St Xavier’s High School in Goregaon (East).

An officer said, “The driver knew about the barricades as it was his daily route. He lost control over the speeding vehicle and brushed it against the barricades. Cleaner Umesh Gurav, 35, who was standing at the door, fell off the bus after his hand got stuck in one of the barricades. Although local police officers rushed him to the nearby trauma care hospital, he was declared dead on arrival. Gurav succumbed to grievous head injuries he sustained in the accident. He was working as a cleaner for the past 15 years.”

Senior police inspector Jyotsna Rasam from Vanrai police station said Gaud will be produced in the court on Wednesday.

Officials from the school said Amogh Warang, a Class 8 student, and Deep Nor, a Class 6 student, were injured in the accident.

“Warang was discharged after receiving first-aid at Holy Spirit Hospital; Amogh has fractured his hip. The bus driver in question is from the agency to which the transport service has been outsourced. The school will take stringent action to ensure such incidents aren’t repeated,” said a spokesperson form the school.

Sneha Joseph, executive director of Holy Spirit Hospital, said, “The boy [Amogh] will undergo an open reduction and internal fixation surgery, in which doctors will replace the broken hip with an implant. Besides, the boy has just abrasions on his elbow.”

First Published: Mar 20, 2019 00:08 IST