By IANS,
Bangalore : A hunt is on to arrest the head of a city-based adventure club following the death of a 25-year-old engineer while he was bungee jumping Saturday, a police official said Sunday.
“We are on the look-out for Sheshadri, head of Centre for Adventure and Rejuvenation of Environment (CARE), who is absconding since the fatal incident,” Bangalore Rural Superintendent of Police B.A. Mahesh told IANS.
V. Bhargava, a Chennai-based marine engineer, succumbed to multiple injuries after plunging from a height of 150 feet when the safety belt attached to the string snapped during a reverse bungee jump.
Bungee jumping is an adventurous feat that involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to a large elastic cord attached to the ankles. Reverse bungee or catapult bungee is a modern type of fairground ride for thrilling experience.
The police late Saturday arrested Sachin Venkateshaiah, who runs Head Rush Bungee, another city-based adventure sports company, which conducted the event along with CARE.
Venkateshaiah was presented to a local court Sunday for police remand and interrogation.
The police have booked a case against CARE and Head Rush under section 304A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for negligence and violating safety norms in organising the event at Paintball arena near AMC Engineering College in the southern suburb.
“The adventurous club does not have licence to conduct bungee jumping. It did not seek our permission by applying for no-objection certificate. We are investigating the case to find out how the event was organised and who is responsible for the mishap,” Mahesh said.
Though Bhargava’s body was handed over to his grieving family, the police are waiting for the post-mortem examination report to ascertain the exact cause of death.
Bhargava, who was employed with a Mangalore-based marine firm, came to Bangalore as part of a 15-member team from Chennai to participate in the bungee jumping camp.
When a severely bleeding Bhargava was rushed to a private hospital, 10 km away from the event venue, doctors pronounced him brought dead.
Absence of ambulance and first-aid facilities required to hold bungee jumping at the venue delayed immediate medical attention in the ‘golden hour’ and rescuing the victim.
“Soon after the tragic incident, the organisers were missing from the venue. Efforts to reach them on their mobiles were in vain,” a witness said.