BAHAWALNAGAR: Sixteen-year-old college student Zainul Abideen succumbed to injuries sustained in an accident involving an overcrowded bus near Mauza Sohailka on Friday.

Zain and another student, Usman Ghani, were travelling home atop the bus roof due to overcrowding when branches of a roadside tree struck them.

Both suffered critical head injuries and were rushed to the Bahawalnagar District Headquarters Hospital.

Zain was later referred to Sahiwal, where he passed away during treatment on Saturday.

Eyewitnesses reported that the students climbed onto the roof as the bus was filled beyond capacity.

A case filed with the Ghumandpur police attributed the accident to the bus driver’s rash driving. The driver fled the scene.

The traffic department claims to have issued over 11,000 challans for overloading this year, critics say the fines are so minimal that transport operators recover the cost multiple times through overloading.

Efforts to contact the traffic DSP for comments were unsuccessful.

Published in Dawn, December 1st, 2024