Panic and Injuries as MSRTC Buses Crash During College Field Trip on Pune–Nashik Highway
Panic and Injuries as MSRTC Buses Crash During College Field Trip on Pune–Nashik Highway
Chaos erupted on the Pune–Nashik highway when two MSRTC buses carrying students from Sahyadri College collided near Eklahare village in Manchar, Ambegaon taluka. What was meant to be a routine return journey from a study tour in the Konkan region turned into a frightening ordeal, leaving 20 students and five teachers injured.
Police reports revealed that the bus from the Akole depot had slowed down at a speed breaker when the second bus, reportedly moving at high speed, crashed into it. The force of the collision shattered the windshield of the rear bus and sent passengers into a state of panic, with many students abruptly woken from their sleep.
Local residents and nearby hotel staff rushed to the scene after hearing the students’ cries, helping pull injured passengers from the wreckage and arranging transport to a private hospital in Manchar. Senior Police Inspector Shrikant Kankal confirmed that while injuries were serious, fortunately, none were life-threatening.
Among the injured were 20 students, including Ajay Pawar (18), Pranav Pardeshi (16), Anushka Korde (16), Sarthak Argade (17), Sanjana Kacheriya (17), Ankita Dighe (17), Ganraj Bangar (16), Pooja Musale (16), Divya Argade (16), Bhakti Chitale (16), Shweta Suryavanshi (16), Ishwari Kokane (16), Shweta Abhang (17), Ishwari Karpe (16), Varsha Rathod (18), Preeti Kharat (16), Punam Shinde (16), Pranshu Tiwari (16), Rahul Talpe (16), and Samadhan Kandalkar. Five teachers were also injured: Bharati Dalvi (57), Rupali Supekar (49), Ganesh Gunjal (53), Santosh Thorat (43), and Ganpat Jondhale (54).
Authorities, including Manchar bus station traffic controller Mohammad Sayyed and ambulance driver Amit Kate, acted swiftly to bring the injured to safety. Local leaders such as Suhas Bankhele, Arvind and Pooja Walse Patil, and Rahul Bankhele visited the hospital to support the students, while aides of former minister Dilip Walse Patil coordinated with doctors to ensure proper treatment.
The State Transport Corporation provided immediate financial assistance of Rs. 1,000 per injured person, totaling Rs. 25,000. “The injured are safe, and arrangements have been made to transport them to Sangamner by two ST buses from the Manchar depot,” confirmed Vasant Argade, Depot Manager.
