Ten hurt as college bus turns turtle on OMR

CHENNAI: It was an accident waiting to happen on the Old Mahabalipuram Road where rash driving is the order of the day. A speeding college bus overturned while attempting to overtake another vehicle, injuring 10 persons, including seven engineering students and a professor, near Kelambakkam on Tuesday morning. The bus was proceeding to a leading engineering college near Tiruporur, after picking up students from Mylapore. According to the police, the vehicle dashed against a culvert, besides an electrical post when it attempted to overtake another college bus from the left side and turned turtle at 7.15 am. “Immediately, we rushed to the spot. The victims were rushed to nearby hospitals,” Tiruporur Inspector Balasubramanian said. Quoting the locals, he said, drivers are forced to drive fast as they have to drop the students in their respective colleges on time. Kelambakkam Inspector Ashokan said the bus involved in the accident was a private vehicle hired by the engineering college for plying students.  “On the instructions of higher officials, we are planning to conduct a meeting with the educational institution authorities to streamline the transportation facilities and avoid rash driving,” he added. Gang Assault Collection Agent, Flees With `5LA gang allegedly waylaid a collection agent of a hardware merchant, assaulted him and decamped with `5 lakh, at Pallikaranai on Monday. As per sources, Rajesh Mittal, who ran a retail hardware shop at Mannadi, had engaged several agents to make collections from his customers in the city and suburbs. On Monday evening, one of the agents, Akshay (26),  was travelling on his two-wheeler along the Velachery Main Road after making collections from shops in Pallikaranai and Madipakkam. Suddenly, a five-member gang in a car intercepted him. The men assaulted him and decamped with `5 lakh. Akshay subsequently lodged a complaint with the Pallikaranai police.Burglars Make Away  With JewelleryBurglars broke into a house and decamped with diamond jewellery worth Rs 4 lakh, at Ramavaram on Monday. Sources said Nitish Malhotra (27), a software engineer and resident of Bhagyalakshmi Nagar, left for work in the morning. As his wife was abroad, there was nobody at home and he locked the door behind him. On returning from office, he found the lock broken and diamond jewellery kept in a safe stolen. Nepalese Woman Held at US ConsulateA 25-year-old Nepali woman, who allegedly submitted fake documents at the US consulate, was arrested by the police in Royapettah on Monday. Tsamchoedolma, a Nepal national, was working as receptionist in a hotel in Bangalore and had submitted a visa application at the US consulate here.   On finding that the documents were fake, a security guard handed her over to the Royapettah police, who registered a case.