Oil Spill on the road giving nightmare to motorists at Bambooflat

What it takes to bell the cat


As usual I was on my way to office when the scooter I was driving suddenly slipped out of my control on the turning near RUAC Hall at Bambooflat. Before I could react, I found myself sandwiched between the road and the two wheeler. Eventually my left leg got caught under the scooter and received bleeding wound on the knee. My wife, riding pillion luckily did not come into direct contact with the rough road, since she found my right leg and the vehicle in between. Those nearby rushed to our rescue. With assistance, I stood on my limbs and saw there was oil spill (probably Diesel) on the road which had a steep slope and a sharp bend as well.

The watch which was my companion for the last more than two and a half decade had its glass shattered, but ticking. Scratch marks and dents were added on the right hand side of the scooter. Both of my limbs especially the knee region was aching. Only solace was that the pillion, mother of two kids was saved of the pains of falling from a moving vehicle. I rang up Police Station Bambooflat wherein the duty staff informed a passerby had already reported the incident and that corrective steps are being taken. After a short stay, we continued our day’s journey to see same kind of oil spill repeated a little ahead on the road at Baputy’s shop junction near Senior Secondary School Bambooflat. This was on the morning of 16th June, 2013.

After dropping my wife at her office, on my way back, I could see quarry dust was spread at both the points on the road masking the oil spill, thus recurrence of accidents was prevented.

Since that day, oil spill surprisingly kept on appearing almost daily, exactly at the same stretch of the road in the morning hours. Consequently someone or the other biker would skid, fall and get injured. Those present nearby would rescue them, curse the authorities and the same remedial step of spreading quarry dust to cover the oil spill would be taken.

Watching the scary scene repeating itself everyday for two weeks, I thought someone must bell the cat. And since my knees were still aching, it could be no one but me. A nearby shopkeeper said one red coloured bus is causing the nuisance repeatedly for the last two weeks. Therefore on 1st August, I rang up the recently constituted STS Control Room. The phone No 240059 was found out of order and the second phone number 230259 was ringing continuously but not answered. I therefore rang up Police Station Bambooflat and informed that the oil spill which was reported two weeks earlier is recurring almost daily at the same spots at the same time and that a red coloured bus is causing it. The duty staff said the matter has been reported to STS Unit Ferrar Gunj. Transport Officer attached to STS Unit Ferrar Gunj confirmed the matter has been brought to his notice and that efforts are underway to find out if any bus under STS Unit is causing the nuisance.


To my utter dismay, on 2nd August, ie 24 hours after the matter was personally brought to the notice of Police and Transport official, oil spill at the same stretch of road was seen giving nightmare to motorists. I was perplexed; either my call has fallen on deaf ears or am barking the wrong tree.

I thus visited Police Station Bambooflat and narrated the entire sequence of event to the DySP MA. He himself dialled the STS Control Room phone numbers and found the calls unanswered. He then appraised the matter to a higher official with Transport portfolio. Thereafter, arrangements were made to depute police personnel from PS Bambooflat at both the points to identify the bus that is repeatedly spilling diesel on the road.

Readers would be amazed to know next day, on 3rd August the same bus crossed the same spot spilling diesel on the road. The police personnel present on the spot stopped the bus at Baputy’s shop junction near Senior Secondary School Bambooflat and informed higher officials about the catch. The transport official, who was in denial mode, had to accept the truth and promised the fault would be fixed forthwith.

All of us would agree oil spill on the road especially on turnings and slopes are indeed a hazard which could even turn fatal. Yet those responsible did not respond to the emergent call made by a member of public.

 Had the officials responded the day the matter was first reported (on 16th August, 2013) life would have been certainly different atleast for those bikers who subsequently suffered damaging skid. Anyway, intervention of DySP MA not only helped to bell the cat, both the phone numbers of the STS Control Room (240059 and 230259) which remained out of order / unanswered, mysteriously started to function properly.

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