Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court on Friday took suo motu cognisance of the death of nine passengers in a sleeper bus fire on the Yamuna Expressway in the Noida-Greater Noida area and sought detailed information from Uttar Pradesh govt on permits, safety standards and inspections of sleeper buses operating in the state.Justice Saurabh Shyam Shamshery directed registration of a case titled “In Re: Nine Dead as Bus Erupts in Flames on Yamuna Expressway vs State of Uttar Pradesh and Two Others.”The court asked state authorities to file affidavits by Oct 13, disclosing the number of sleeper bus permits issued in Uttar Pradesh during the past three years and whether safety standards were verified before permits were granted.The affidavits must also clarify whether bus designs were altered in a manner that compromised passenger safety and whether the vehicles were being used to transport commercial parcels.The court further sought details of border check-post inspections, night-time enforcement drives and whether transport inspectors record passenger statements, check fire extinguishers, verify awareness of emergency exits and ensure that drivers and conductors receive adequate safety training.The bench also asked the state to provide details of criminal proceedings initiated in similar accidents over the past three years and the outcomes of those cases.Referring to media reports, the court noted data presented in the Rajya Sabha showing 45 bus fire incidents across India between Jan 2023 and Dec 10, 2025. These incidents resulted in 64 deaths and 145 injuries.The court also cited previous incidents in Uttar Pradesh, including a bus fire on the Rae Bareli-Prayagraj-Lucknow highway in July 2023 that claimed three lives, a Nov 2024 incident on the Kannauj-Lucknow-Agra Expressway in which four people died, and a Dec 2025 accident on the Yamuna Expressway that killed 13 passengers.During the hearing, the chief secretary, director general of police and additional chief secretary (transport) appeared via video conferencing and briefed the court on the accidents and the action taken by govt.“On a specific query of this court about checking of such buses within Uttar Pradesh, the court was informed about steps taken by the transport department. However, the court finds that there is still scope for improvement and for intensifying regular checks of such buses,” the bench observed.The court further remarked that air-conditioned sleeper buses appeared to be operating without adequate safety measures, including functional fire extinguishers, and that drivers and conductors might not be sufficiently trained to respond to emergencies.The bench directed authorities to take action against the driver, conductor and licensee if the bus involved in the latest incident is found to have violated regulations. It also said govt may consider banning buses operated by such licensees.
