A five-member committee has been formed to investigate the head-on collision between two buses that killed nine people on the Sylhet-Dhaka highway in Sylhet’s Osmaninagar yesterday (7 August).
The Sylhet district administration formed the committee today (8 August) and asked it to submit its report within five working days.
Sylhet Additional District Magistrate Pinky Saha is heading the committee, which includes representatives from the Highway Police, Fire Service and Civil Defence, Roads and Highways Department, and Osmaninagar Upazila administration.
The crash occurred around 7:10am yesterday at Kashikapur when a Unique Paribahan bus collided head-on with a Bengal Paribahan bus.
Nine people were killed and 16 others injured in the crash. Seven victims died at the scene, while a 3–4-year-old child died after being taken to hospital and another victim died while undergoing treatment.
Sylhet Deputy Commissioner (DC) Abdullah Al Mamun said the highway was relatively clear when the accident occurred.
He said speeding and the possibility of a driver falling asleep at the wheel were among the preliminary possibilities, but the exact cause would be determined by the probe committee.
Meanwhile, the district administration provided Tk10,000 to each injured victim and Tk20,000 to the family of each deceased victim for burial expenses. A critically injured patient in the ICU received Tk15,000.
Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury visited the injured today and announced Tk5 lakh for each deceased victim’s family, Tk3 lakh for those suffering permanent disabilities and Tk1 lakh for injured victims undergoing treatment.
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