The state transport department on Sunday announced that INR 2.5 crore has been sanctioned for eye and other medical check up of drivers of private tourist buses in every district of Maharashtra.
Deputy transport commissioner (road safety) Bharat Kalaskar said : “We have noticed that in many bus crashes in the past 1-2 years, the driver was found to be in poor health or poor eyesight. As part of road safety, we have decided to go ahead with this campaign for which the funds were sanctioned during the weekend.”
He further said that after the Buldhana bus tragedy, the officials at 50 RTOs had checked nearly 15,000 buses and booked over 4,200 offences. “Instead of penalising drivers and bus operators, we want to ensure that the driver follows proper traffic rules. We will also be conducting training on road safety for them during the medical check up camps,” he said.
The transport department has tied up with senior doctors who will participate in the camps. “We will also distribute free spectacles to the drivers with poor vision,” he said.
The MSRTC conducts such eye and health check ups of its drivers annually, after the age of 40 for every driver. Such check ups are also conducted every two years for young drivers, a MSRTC spokesperson said.
