Have you ever seen a monkey steering the wheel of a bus? This video of a fury little driver may be amusing, but not so much to the authorities in India, who suspended the actual driver who let the animal control the vehicle.
The incident took place in the southeastern Indian state of Karnataka on Monday. However, the authorities only learned about it after footage of the driver – smiling and patting the monkey as it sat on the steering wheel of the moving bus – went viral.
The driver, identified as M Prakash, “has been taken off duty for allowing the monkey to sit on the steering wheel and handle it,” an official from the local transport company confirmed. He said the authorities launched an inquiry since “a driver cannot risk the life of passengers.”
The monkey, which belongs to a school teacher, sat next to him at first, but then its curiosity and mischievousness must have taken over. So it went to make friends with the driver and jumped on the steering wheel. The primate reportedly steered the bus for almost 10 minutes, while M Prakash was only working the pedals and gears. Around 30 passengers were on the monkey-driven bus.
The Twittersphere has been buzzing over the monkey bus-ness for a week now, with many people noting that the animal looks “so cute and polite” in the video.
Some believe the suspension was too harsh for the driver.
Others wondered if the monkey still has its job. If not, then the transport authorities should hire this cute, long-tailed primate since it may have a promising career.
Others said the man chose the wrong profession, and that perhaps he should try his luck in a wildlife-related sphere.
Good that action is taken and he is suspended, but clearly he is in wrong job, this man is a sensitive animal lover (see how langur trusts him) and could be an asset in wildlife related jobs. But unfortunately Indian authorities/decision makers are too incompetent to value these.
— depalan (@depalan) 6 октября 2018 г.
There were those who criticized the driver for endangering lives.
One can only hope and pray that this reckless driver of KSFTC was disciplined and reprimanded for what he is seen doing getting an animal to take charge of his vehicle. He clearly endangered the lives of the passengers forbthis dtupid prank.This is no fun .
— Prem Prakash (@pp1931) 7 октября 2018 г.
“This is no fun,” one person wrote. Another tweeted: “We dont want an inattentive driver with distractions from a monkey.”
This may look cute to some, but there are enough road accidents already, we don't want an inattentive driver with distractions from a monkey. Think about a cute kid in a car or bike being hit because of this driver's recklessness. Lives are precious.
— Dr. Sámmy (@TheDrSammy) 6 октября 2018 г.
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