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Driving into trouble? |
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By: Lavanya Srinivasan |
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Date:
2008-11-14 |
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Place: Bangalore |
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Dangerous moves: Babu Bhaiyya is stoic about driving with a broken hand and all the passenger can do is say a little prayer before boarding the bus Pics/Lavanya Srinivasan | It all started when MiD DAY reader Mayur Khakar noticed an elderly BMTC driver with his left hand in a plaster, struggling to manoeuvre the busy Corporation-Mysore Bank area.
That got us going and we tracked down Babu Bhaiyya, as he's fondly called by his friends. Babu (53) fractured his left hand while he was on duty recently. But he believes that he is doing his duty by not taking leave and continuing to navigate the city's mean streets.
Not safe?
He was initially hesitant on talking about how he injured his hand. "I don't want any publicity nor can I give any details as there is nothing to talk about," said Babu who has been with BMTC for 35 years now.
But when prodded further, he said, "I'm perfectly alright, I've enough strength to go on like this. I don't need any leave to take rest. Moreover, it's just my left hand, so it doesn't matter much."
Babu's left hand is covered in a cast and yet he's been driving for the last two days.
"The steering handle hit his hand and he was hurt. But he's such a brave man that he didn't stop driving," said Rafiq, a bus conductor.
The MiD DAY team got on to the bus to check how he managed to drive the bus. When questioned if he's straining his injured hand while driving on such long shifts, he said, "All this is nothing. In my 35 years' experience, I've met with bigger accidents and yet managed to work however sick I am. This is just a small thing and it hardly hurts."
Unsafe
"It's not safe for both the driver and the passengers. This just can't be left like that and we believe in the comfort of our drivers. This is ridiculous, he should just take rest and spare us from the trouble," said V Nagaraj, divisional traffic officer, BMTC.
D Sreenivas, DCP traffic (East), says, "That's a huge risk, for the passengers and the driver alike. If this is not taken care of the driver's licence can be cancelled. It's not about braveness or anything."
"It's not advisable to strain your hand so much when you're on the move. And if it's a fracture, it just gets worse and takes a long time to heal," says Dr Anita Das, Sagar Hospital.
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