National

‘Meri mummy ko phone mila do’: Driver Sushil Kumar who saved Rishabh Pant’s life recounts scary moments ahead of cricketer’s rescue

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday announced that his government would on Republic Day honour the driver and operator of Haryana Roadways, who saved the life of cricketer Rishabh Pant when he met with an accident on the Delhi-Dehradun highway near Roorkee on Friday.Pant was returning from Delhi to Roorkee to surprise his mother and his car collided with the divider on the Narsan border of Roorkee near Hammadpur Jhal on Friday.

Giving details of the accident, bus driver Sushil Kumar and conductor Paramjeet said that they spotted an uncontrolled car ram over the divider near Gurukul Narsan. They ran towards the car to help the passenger.“Meri Mummy ko phone mila do” were Pant’s first words as he was pulled away to safety by them.

In a chat with Times of India, they revealed how Pant could barely speak in the aftermath and pointed towards his smartphone which was lying near the mangled vehicle.“Meri mummy ko phone mila do,” he said.Pant, who was alone in the car, suffered injuries on his back, forehead and leg. Pant was driving his car when he met with the accident on the Delhi-Dehradun highway. Images from the accident showed the car in a gutted state.”As we dragged him (Rishabh Pant) out, the car caught fire and burned down within 5-7 seconds. He had major injuries on his back. We enquired about his personal information and that is when he said he is an Indian team cricketer,” bus staff Paramjeet who rescued Cricketer Rishabh Pant said.Pant escaped the near-fatal accident with burn injuries among others that will require plastic surgeries and he could be airlifted to Delhi if required, DDCA official has said. According to reports, he had dozed off on the wheel.