A woman who rarely missed her morning walk in 30 years went out as usual on Monday but did not return home.

She was mowed down by a school bus near Wellington Square.

Shanti Devi Singh, 77, was trying to cross the road on her way home near the Lenin Sarani-Nirmal Chandra Street crossing at 7.10am when the bus ran over her, police said.

“The woman was trying to cross the road when the empty school bus that had
just dropped children to a central Calcutta school hit her. The rear wheels of the
bus went over her,” said an officer of Bowbazar police station.

Like every day, Shanti Devi had set out from her home off Rani Rashmoni Road at 6am, her grandson told Metro.

“For the last 30 years, my grandmother has been going for her morning walk. She would go to Wellington Square and return home between 7.30 and 8am. Today, she did not,” said Alok Singh, 40, her grandson.

Shanti Devi lived with her elder son and daughter-in-law, barely five minutes from where she met with the accident.

“My grandmother was an active woman. Every day, she would climb up and down the stairs of the two-storeyed building where she lived. She would usually not skip her morning walk unless she did not feel well, which was not often. She was a regular morning walker,” said Alok.

The family came to know about the accident from neighbours.

When Shanti Devi was out for her walk, her elder son was also on his morning walk on Red Road.

“My grandmother and father would set out at the same time but they would go in different directions. She was capable of taking care of herself,” said Alok.

Alok who lives in Moulali rushed to Wellington Square after his mother called him.

“When I reached the spot, the police told me she had been taken to NRS Medical College and Hospital. I went to NRS hospital. My grandmother was brought to the hospital in a taxi and her head was crushed,” Alok said.

Doctors at NRS Medical College and Hospital declared Shanti Devi dead.

“At that hour, the road was empty. By the time people could react, the bus had fled,” said a man who was loading goods nearby.

The bus was intercepted near Alimuddin Street, the police said. The bus driver, Murari Samanta, 53, a resident of Muchipara, was arrested.

“The bus has been seized and a mechanical test will be conducted to ascertain whether it was a mechanical defect of the bus or a human error,” said an officer.

Shanti Devi’s family members have filed a police complaint.

Shanti Devi’s body reached her home around 7pm on Monday.

School buses ferrying children are a frequent site on the city roads in the morning hours till around 8-8.30am. Many of them are reckless, especially after dropping off children.