Monday’s tragic accident, which claimed seven lives, is one of the worst in the history of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) in its 98-year history of public transport bus operations in the city. The latest incident is part of a horrific series of accidents this year, which have claimed 10 lives across the city.
As BEST officials grappled with the aftermath of the tragedy, some retired officials said it was the first major incident of its kind. “Even though there have been accidents in the past where the BEST bus left the road and lost their lives, compared to the previous incidents, this time the number is unprecedented,” said the retired officer.
The accident also highlights a troubling pattern: It’s the fourth major incident involving a wet lease contractor in the past year. Under BEST’s wet lease model, the authority retains ownership of the buses and hands over the operation of the buses to private operators. These operators are responsible for covering driving, maintenance and operating costs, while BEST continues to oversee route management and scheduling.
The model was brought in to address BEST’s financial struggles, raising serious safety concerns, especially after all the recent accidents involving buses operated under the wet lease system.
On September 1 of this year, a 40-year-old passenger in Kalachowki was drunk and crashed into the bus route of BEST. The bus rammed into two cars, a motorcycle and hit two pedestrians, out of which 27-year-old Nupura Maniyar died later.
In October this year, 45-year-old businessman Dnyaneshwar Dighe was killed when a speeding BEST bus hit a parked car in Prabhadevi. Bus driver Amin Ibrahim Sheikh has been arrested on the charge of causing death by careless driving.
Last June, a person who was sleeping on the footpath near Mahim Bus Depot was run over by a BEST bus in the dark. The driver claimed he did not see the victim. He was arrested and later released on bail. Additionally, in another incident near Ghatkopar depot, both a passenger and the bus driver sustained minor injuries when the bus derailed.
In 2023, four people were killed in two separate accidents of BEST buses.
Many of these involve fatal accidents wet strap Buses, especially those operated by private contractors. Transport expert Ashok Datar says that such incidents have exposed the failure of wet lease system. “These accidents highlight the failure of the wet leasing system, where private contractors are allowed to operate buses without adequate oversight, potentially compromising passenger safety and leading to fatal consequences,” he said.
As the number of accidents increases, the action has been questioned Effectiveness of the wet strap model and the failure of the BEST administration to ensure better driver training.
Ashish Chemburkar, former BEST president and former corporator of Shiv Sena (UBT) criticized the administration’s handling of the situation and questioned the effectiveness of the wet lease model. “While BEST provides training to its direct drivers, the responsibility for training wet hire drivers is not clearly defined. Although we understand that BEST is running at a loss and hires buses under wet hire contracts, the organization should establish clear guidelines and rules for these contractors,” He said.
He said that BEST has been managed by the General Manager and the BMC Commissioner since 2022, and because of the dissolution of the BMC and the absence of a corporator, the organization does not have a committee comprising representatives of local bodies. No BEST committee has been active since 2022. Administration, under the general manager and BMC commissioner, there is not enough oversight by local representatives,” said Chemburkar.