The Maharashtra Motor Vehicles department has begun the process of revoking the driving licence of the bus driver responsible for the BEST bus mishap which took place on December 9, officials told news agency PTI on Thursday.
The accident left nine people dead and injured 40.
A show cause notice was sent to the bus driver Sanjay More from the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Wadala, as part of the procedure to revoke his license.
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The process had been initiated since earlier this week, deputy regional transport officer Pallavi Kothawade confirmed to PTI. The Mumbai police had asked the Wadala RTO to revoke More’s licence due to the grave nature of the accident.
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“We issued a show cause notice to More on Monday. Further action will be taken under Motor Vehicles Act based on his reply to the notice,” Kothawade said.
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On December 9, an electric BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) bus collided with several vehicles at night in city’s Kurla. Nine people died, several more were injured and vehicles were also damaged during the accident.
More’s license, which he held for 23 years, once revoked will ensure that he will not be able to drive any vehicle, officials told PTI.
Sanjay More had been employed by a third-party agency that supplies drivers to electric bus manufacturer Olectra’s subsidiary EVEY TRANS.
He had four years of experience driving BEST mini buses and started driving the 12-metre e-bus, like the one involved in the accident only in December this year, after shifting to a different company.
RTO records show that his transport category licence, initially valid for light motor vehicles like tempos and taxis, was issued on July 5, 1990. In 1991 he got a heavy vehicle licence required to drive trucks and buses.
More also possesses a driver’s badge, issued in 1999, which is compulsory for those driving public service vehicles, including BEST and MSRTC buses.
