In a shocking incident, a school bus driver in India’s Mumbai was booked for using a bamboo stick in place of a gear lever.

The incident came to light on Tuesday morning after the driver identified as Raj Kumar, rammed the bamboo-stick operated bus into a BMW car at Khar West, reports news18.com.

The driver then chased the bus and forced the driver to pull-over. While questioning the bus driver, he noticed that the bus had a bamboo stick in place of the gear lever.

The car owner immediately called the police,who arrested Kumar. The school bus was seized and Kumar was booked under section 279 and 336 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

During interrogation, the driver revealed that he did not get ‘the time’ to repair the broken gear lever and decided to use a bamboo stick instead, the police said. He had been driving the bus in that condition for three days, they added.

Meanwhile, the school has issued a statement stating that all the students are safe, ‘The school is shocked to learn about the bus incident that took place on 5th February 2019. All the students in the bus are completely safe,’ it read.

The statement further stated that the school, along with the school transport committee, is investigating the incident and will fully cooperate with the authorities.

‘A complete audit is also immediately being carried out of all the school buses. The school will once again conduct a thorough training of all transport contractor drivers and staff,’ the statement added.​