Mulund Police have initiated further investigation into the incident. (Source: Representational image from Unsplash)Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport’s (BEST) 79th foundation day celebrations turned sour after a 56-year-old woman was fatally run over by a wet-lease bus near Mulund Check Naka on Friday afternoon.The accident took place around 2.30 pm when the bus operated by wet-lease operator Mateshwari was plying on route 512 from the Nerul bus station to Mulund Check Naka bus station.According to the preliminary accident report, the bus had halted at the Mulund Check Naka traffic signal when the woman, Jayshri Bhanaji Parmar, who was also a BMC sanitation worker, was crossing the road.Just then, as the signal turned green, the driver started the bus and hit the woman. She fell on the road and came under the bus’s right tire.The conductor immediately informed the police control room. Police personnel reached the spot and called an ambulance, following which the woman was taken to Agrawal Hospital.The driver, Ravi Bhagwant Bhoise, and conductor, Shailesh Sudhakar Wagh, both employed by Mateshwari, were taken to Mulund Police Station along with the bus for further investigation.Officials from BEST and Mateshwari, including depot and accident officers, were present at the police station and assisting in the investigation.Mulund Police have initiated further investigation into the incident.Story continues below this adThe incident comes in the wake of severe criticism of private contractors by BEST panel members and commuters amid multiple accident cases. Mateshwari, a wet-lease operator, has specifically been called out by BEST Committee Chairperson Trushna Vishwasrao for the majority of the accidents.Post the fatal crash in Mankhurd that claimed the life of a 65-year-old farmer last month, Vishwasrao convened a meeting of all wet-lease operators, cautioning them against giving overtime duties to drivers and warning them of severe repercussions, including contract cancellations if such accidents happen again.The administration subsequently launched a 3-day safety training session for the Undertaking’s 5,200 contract drivers covering aspects like lane discipline, maintaining safe distances, and speed limits.