[mooza]

^^ Terribly sad for the toddler and the family concerned !

This is also a reminder for all, that leaving such a small child on the roads (unaccompanied by adults), can be fatal for poor children, who get mowed down for no fault of theirs, without knowing what's hit them.

In such cases, not only is the driver negligent for not checking his surroundings before moving his vehicle, I feel the people in charge of the kid are also at fault, IMO.

RIP to the poor kid's soul, hope the family recovers from the shock.

[Thad E Ginathom]

This is a terrible thing. There are blind spots around all vehicles: we can check before getting in, but what if a small child wanders in front or behind as we move off. It is something to be dreaded.

A small life lost, and lives shattered. Very sad.

[CBlazer]

Originally Posted by ramzsys

The scary part is, the tipper crossed over the median and hit this car. EDIT: this is a fiesta. Image source: Dinamalar tamil epaper.

Very sad that so many lives were lost. My condolences to Rajesh's family.

I was shocked to learn so many people had died - I understand now after reading the articles and seeing the picture. The worst possible scenario I guess - one is driving down the highway and tonnes of steel suddenly land in your path. It also seems like accidents with tipper lorries are common on this route.

[drmohitg]

What kind of a punishment is the driver looking at in this case? He was not overspeeding or drunk or anything like that. It was just some ignorance and extremely unfortunate turn of events that led to the child's death. This kind of incidents sometimes make me feel really uneasy about driving on our roads. For instance the recently aired advertisement of ceat bike tyre where they show an ignorant father suddenly changing his direction and wheels the stroller right on to a road and the biker has to apply emergency breaks. It was an add but I see many such incidents on our roads. How does the law see such cases?

[StarrySky]

Sad to know about the kid who lost her life.

It's a nightmare scenario for the driver as well.

I'm not sure if the hospital can be blamed for "refusing" treatment in the child's case. If the hospital does not have the facilities/specialists to treat the injuries suffered by the patient, I would prefer that the patient be moved at the earliest to a hospital which has the facilities. I'm not sure if any live-saving treatment can be done during the golden hour at a hospital which does not have enough facilities.

[Sha09mel]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

For instance the recently aired advertisement of ceat bike tyre where they show an ignorant father suddenly changing his direction and wheels the stroller right on to a road and the biker has to apply emergency breaks. It was an add but I see many such incidents on our roads. How does the law see such cases?

+1

Travelling by car I come across many morons who happen to change lanes without warnings, especially these rickshaws and two wheeler. I dread to think what if I happen to knock someone down which is no fault of mine. How does the law work in such cases, when the injury is fatal?

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

What kind of a punishment is the driver looking at in this case? He was not overspeeding or drunk or anything like that. It was just some ignorance and extremely unfortunate turn of events that led to the child's death. This kind of incidents sometimes make me feel really uneasy about driving on our roads. For instance the recently aired advertisement of ceat bike tyre where they show an ignorant father suddenly changing his direction and wheels the stroller right on to a road and the biker has to apply emergency breaks. It was an add but I see many such incidents on our roads. How does the law see such cases?

Originally Posted by Sha09mel

+1

Travelling by car I come across many morons who happen to change lanes without warnings, especially these rickshaws and two wheeler. I dread to think what if I happen to knock someone down which is no fault of mine. How does the law work in such cases, when the injury is fatal?

In such cases, it's very hard to assess the accident and draw conclusions immediately.

Firstly, a Spot-Mahazar will be conducted by the police, after which the witnesses will be questioned, and the accused will be cross-examined and drilled by the Court. The Judge will have a tough decision to make, and a lot depends on the lawyers and how the facts and details of the case is framed by both parties.

One cannot write off the driver here, for being negligent. He might have even had the presence of mind, but such things happen so fast. Back in the '90s and '80s, there were far fewer cars so kids could be left to play by themselves on the neighborhood street, and generally someone to watch over them.

But these days, people have become increasingly occupied, life has become that much more fast-paced, and the number of vehicles have gone up ten fold too. The chances of coming face-to-face with a vehicle is so much more now, than 20 years ago, on a quiet neighborhood road.

Besides, I'd also say that it is not easy to keep an eye out for little kids at all times. Even if he driver had indeed checked before getting into the car, a toddler might have quietly trotted towards the car, while the driver gets ready to start his car. Sitting in a car like a Sumo, it's hard to spot each and every thing around you, and if the driver and his lawyer can somehow prove that he had indeed checked before setting off, he would be fine.

One must also remember that speed and rash-negligent driving may not always go together. A driver may be rash and negligent without speeding, and a driver may also NOT be rash and negligent, even if he was going fast.

It's up to the Court to decide. The Metropolitan Magistrate Traffic Court in Bangalore is where the accused will be tried.

P.S. Being booked under Sec. 304A of the IPC would be a harsh move. A fine or imprisonment, or both, are on the cards. He might be booked under a milder section, such as 279 of the IPC.

[StarrySky]

Could the child's parents be sued for negligence too - for letting a 2.5year old play on a public road without supervision?

[shenoytech]

Originally Posted by Fauji

Perfect. This definitely works. Whenever i travel on NH 4 i just count how many times the trucks had tried to come in my lane and went back after hearing the horn. On an average it will be around 6-7 times everytime between Bangalore - Hubli!!

+1 You cannot assume or take for granted anything with trucks. I travel a lot on NH4 and encounter this sudden lane changing frequently. Once had a close call because RTO guys tried stoping a truck in front of my front truck and my front truck suddenly moved from right to left lane and back to right lane, cutting my acceleration and cornering me to divider. Thankfully it did not happen at full speed. On NH roads only experience coupled with common sense prepare you for situations like this. But the reality is you are only good as your last drive.

[aaggoswami]

1) The sumo hitting toddler reminds me of another incident where in an SUV owner ended up crushing his younger daughter and police arrested the driver of the SUV.

2) What can be done to avoid such scenes :

• Always honk before starting off in area where kids are playing
• Always have the front windows lowered ( this is also helpful as one can start A/C and blow the air out ). This way it becomes clear is there is some sound
• Dont switch ON stereo/music system immediately after sitting/starting the car. Drive for, lets say 50 mtrs. and then start stereo and roll up windows.
• Watch out for any signs/signals from others ( IF others are present )

3) Next to my house we have common plot where toddlers and small kids play. When I am parking car there, while reversing, I switch off A/C, stereo, lower my window and reverse while honking in small beeps. This helps warn kids and lets any noise come inside cabin.


4) Before I start off, if kids are playing in common plot, I honk and lower windows and then start off. Small honks can help a child get warned and if the kid is very small, his/her elder sibling, parents, etc. would be present. This has to be done when things are getting increasingly crowded and at a time when discipline ( in whole country ) is as good as honesty in government of India ( read absent ).

[one-77]

About the toddler getting run over, aren't the parents at least as negligent as the driver?
They should never have let such a little kid wander out onto the road in the first place.
I've always wondered why people in our country so conveniently neglect such things and let their children come in the way of harm. Bad parenting is the norm here.

[autocrat]

Its indeed sad to see life sucked out of an innocent child.

Sadly we do not have enough safe areas like parks and playgrounds where kids can play safely. Its the onus of parents to ensure children dont stray onto the streets.

Some kids playing cricket in their compound rushed out the gate following a tennis ball, and narrowly missed collision with a speeding cab.

I have a practice of walking around the car once, checking the tyres, before I start off.

[hemanth.anand]

My car had an accident. :(
An accident where no human was even "involved" forget injured.
All these when it was Parked


The culprit


The damage


The misaligned spoiler

Have posted the same in my ownership thread
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2717670

[swarooppatil]

Originally Posted by autocrat

Its indeed sad to see life sucked out of an innocent child.

Sadly we do not have enough safe areas like parks and playgrounds where kids can play safely. Its the onus of parents to ensure children dont stray onto the streets.

Some kids playing cricket in their compound rushed out the gate following a tennis ball, and narrowly missed collision with a speeding cab.

I have a practice of walking around the car once, checking the tyres, before I start off.

I do this on and off, but now definitely feel it should be made a regular practice. Its not only kids, there a bright chances of a stray dog or cat taking shelter under the car.

[Tejas Ingle]

Originally Posted by swarooppatil

Its not only kids, there a bright chances of a stray dog or cat taking shelter under the car.

Once my neighbour got into his Alto and started off when we started hearing loud meows from the car. He stopped the car and realised that meows were from the hood. On opening the hood we saw the scared cat sitting on the gearbox. Luckily it did not touch the exhaust or get pulled in the belts. It took us some time to get it out since it was not ready to come out.
I do check below the car when starting from my place since there are puppies playing around. And once you look below the car, there are no blind spots left. You can easily spot if there is someone on the other side of the car.