Mangled remains of TGSRTC bus.
Hyderabad: Investigations into the bus-lorry collision at Chevalla on Monday that claimed the lives of 19 people revealed that the lorry driver was not drunk at the time of the accident.
According to a report in The Indian Express, Rajendranagar DCP Yogesh Goutam has confirmed that there was no alcohol in the lorry driver’s bloodstream after the forensic report came in late Tuesday.
Witness accounts, including bus conductor Radha and a few passengers, stated that the lorry, which was in the wrong lane, made no effort to avoid the collision, making officials theorise that the driver had either been tired or trying to avoid a pothole.
Radha had also stated that Dastagiri’s (bus driver) quick thinking saved the lives of many others “He moved the bus to the left, and people on one side got saved. If he had gone straight, I would not have made it,” she said.
The Telangana Director General of Police B Shivadhar Reddy, who visited the accident site on Tuesday, also stated that apart from the pothole, there were no issues with the road. “He tried to avoid a small pothole, swerved slightly to the right and collided with the bus. Otherwise, we do not see any issue with the road — the curve is not sharp, there are no trees blocking visibility and no other obstructions,” he was quoted as saying by The Hindu.
The lorry owner, Lachiram Naik, had reportedly handed over the wheel to the driver, Akash Danya Kamle, merely 20 minutes before the crash. Investigators suspect that Kamle might have dozed off at the wheel since he made no effort to avoid the collision.
Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) in a statement emphasised that neither the TGSRTC bus nor its driver was responsible for the mishap. “The bus was in full fitness condition, and the driver had no previous record of accidents,” the statement said.
On Monday, the lorry, loaded with gravel, approached at a high speed and rammed into the bus near Chevella, which was heading from Tandur at 4:40 am as a Private Hire (PHB) Express service.
The impact crushed the front and left portions of the bus, and the gravel load fell onto passengers, burying them instantly.
Nineteen people were killed in the accident including the two drivers. Over 30 people received injuries and are undergoing treatment at different hospitals.
After the deadly accident, videos have surfaced from the accident site where National Highways Department personnel were seen patching potholes with cement.
This post was last modified on November 5, 2025 5:17 pm