To all those reading this thread, this is my first post on TeamBHP. I describe in this thread how we met with a horrifying crash with a buffalo with some points that worked in our favour to get us out of a situation where a dead animal is treated as a dead family member and the culprit is not spared by the mob that gathers in moments.
It was a hot sunny day on the 26th of July last year when we started of from my grandparent's home in Dholpur. Crossing Agra by 3:30 in the afternoon we were targetting a 7 o'clock coffee at our home in Jaipur.
Taking NH11 were enjoying the drive back on the newly laid down highway and the pleasent weather that greeted us. All along the trip we had discussions at a number of occasions about buying a new vehicle. Most of the discussions ended up in favour of buying a new vehicle with points like deteriorating driving pleasure and comfort provided by our trusty 10 year old Qualis with 215050 km on the odo. My mom especially did not like me and my dad teaming up against her and speaking in favour of buying a new car. After all it had taken us to numerous places in Rajasthan and U.P. on our annual December trips with the extended family and in most of the cases with 9 passengers on board with their luggage on the roof.
So just as we were approaching a small roadside temple which was seeing a rush of devotees due to Guru Poornima. My dad who was driving instructed me to call up a relative fir whom we were carrying a washing machine and a bag of Wheat fresh from the countryside to check whether these things could be dropped off at his place that very day instead of that day later. It must have been only 5 seconds from the moment i took my eyes off the road and picked up my dad's phone to look for the number that.....
Screeeeech.... BANG
a blacked out windshield
and the car comes to a stop on the line separating the fast lane fron the slow one, with the engine still running.
I look at my dad who is uttering the words 'Ab iska kya kiya ja sakta hai', then i glance back to see my mom in a state of shock, that's i see a buffalo lying on the road through the rear window, nearing the end of its life making useless attempts to get up.
My dad slots into first and moves the vehicle to the service lane and the first thought that comes to my mind is to stop and check the damages. I ask him to stop to which he replies that its not safe stopping here with no witness to the accident and the villagers from around the spot running to the site of the accident or in the general direction of the source of sound from such a loud hit.
Sitting inside we could now see through a cracked windshield, a cloud of steam rising from the engine bay, the wipers half way up and the hood partially stuck to the windshield. The car was making a sound as the wheels moved and the steering was way out of alignment, far superseeding the rural jeeps' standard. It was best to stop.
My dad called up 100 which is supposed to redirect you to the closest police control room. The closest was Bharatpur and tje call was picked up swiftly. Only when the call was connected did he get out of the vehicle and i followed suit. He was explaining the situation to the person who picked up the call who was kind of interested in solving the problem on the phone itself. A few vehicles passed by and a couple stopped. A driver of a Scorpio which was fully loaded with people was kind enough to give us the number of the SHO of the closest police station which was Halena. In about 10 minutes the crowd that was gathering must have reached a 100 odd running. Some sympathising with the animal that had died, some wanting to see the cut on my finger due to whe windshield glass and some just praising our stars which saved us.
An ambulance arrived, a result of the phone call made to 100, which i was pretty impressed to see, coming on time. In the mean while the owner of the buffalo had come and was really sorry for the mishap. We were really sorry for his loss too. It was the only animal he had and used to earn his bread and butter from the milk it yielded.
The cause of the accident was the trees that the NHAI plants in the median on the highways. The buffalo was invisible and on the other side of the median. It came charging through the bushes and appeared some 70 meters in front of us in a state of frenzy and shock. The screeching tyres coupled to the state of shock that it was in. Our vehicle must be touching 90kmph when my dad reacted and the brakes locked up and the car skidded a good 35-40 meters before hitting the buffalo. The speed at the time of impact must have been around 35-40 kmph. The buffalo hit the bonnet with its front legs partially lifted from the ground as it tried to avoid our vehicle. This was lucky for us as it came on the bonnet, hit the windshield and just the front part of its body rolled over the driver side roof rest of its body just flung into the air away from the vehicle. Had it been planted on all fours on the road, due to the height of the vehicle the buffalo could have toppled and the vehicle could have been forced to go over it bringing along with it a possible rollover.
We later learnt that some villager on the other side had opened an umbrella to save himself from the drizzle, which happened to be a sudden movement, right in the face of the buffalo and scared it to its end.
Anyways, the police from Halena Police station came to the spot and the vehicle was locked and towed to the police station. The owner of the buffalo came to the police station and was asking for some compensation to which my dad asked him to lodge an FIR. He would have done it himself but was wanting to judge the reaction of the owner before doing so. The FIR was necessary for the Insurance Claim. The Buffalo owner was reluctant in lodging the FIR as he was illiterate and did not want the hassle of running to the courts. So we left it to him to do whatever he liked. We also offered to give him Rs. 10000 in cash to which he would have agreed had it not been for some village folk who were instigating him to ask for nothing less than Rs. 25000.
We asked some relatives living in Bharatpur to arrange for some cash and a Taxi to transport us and our luggage to Jaipur. Two days later the SHO called us up and said that the Buffalo owner had lodged the FIR and that the hearing in the local court was to be in another two days time for which the Driver and the owner of the vehicle have to be present at some court near Halena. My parents went there and the case was settles outside the court with us having to pay the Owner of the buffalo Rs. 12000 which my dad was more than happy to pay as he would have spent that much amount of money in transportation for subsequent hearings of the case.
Things that worked in our favour ad saved us from an enraged mob:
1. The Ambulance arriving on time.
2. A local on seeing my Dad's ID card having his picture in Khaki Uniform (Central Govt. Employee) which he pulled out of his wallet for a moment (just so that the villagers could glance at it) asked him where he worked, to which he replied that he was a Superintendent (very carefully not mentioning the department), and mistook him to be SP of Police.
3. Knowing an high ranked ex-policeman who called up the SHO at Halena which sped up the process.
4. Rain, which started just 5 minutes after the crash and made the mob disperse as there was no shelter nearby.
5. Talking to the villagers and feeling sorry for the owner of the buffalo.
Apparent damages to the vehicle.
The windshield was cracked but held its place pretty well.
Driver side A-pillar dented.
Hood crumpled up like paper
Busted front right side fender.
Busted Battery
Radiator smeared (yes, literally smeared, forgrt about the grille and bumper) onto the engine, leaking fluids.
Steering setup badly out of alignment
Worst fear: the impact having disturbed the pulleys at the front of the engine and the head gasket, which could have lead to a loss of compression as explained by the workshop people.
Decision: Sell it off in addition to claiming the damages corresponding to a totalled vehicle from insurance. Which only made us about Rs. 165000 richer and a saddening at least another 200000 km of loyal service poorer.
Bade goodbye to our beloved in the first week of August with a heavy heart and cursed ourselves to have even thought of replacing it in the first place.
What became of the Qualis and the Buffalo can be seen the the following pictures.