Jul 11, 2024 11:12 AM IST
At least two people were killed and 16 other injured after a double-decker bus collided with a truck in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras on Thursday morning.
At least two people were killed and 16 other injured after a double-decker sleeper bus collided with a truck near Toli village of Thana Sikandrarao in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras on Thursday morning, district magistrate Ashish Kumar said.
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath took cognizance of the Hathras incident and directed the officials to ensure proper treatment for injured, an official statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.
The bus rammed into a truck parked on the roadside due to the negligence of the bus driver which claimed two lives, leaving around 16 injured, said Ashish Kumar.
Upon receiving the information, Hathras Superintendent of Police (SP) Nipun Aggarwal along with the police officials rushed to the spot and carried out a rescue operation.
The injured were admitted to a hospital. Yogi Adityanath has expressed grief over the loss of lives. He has directed the officials to accelerate the rescue task of the injured, the statement from the CMO mentioned.
The incident comes a day after a similar accident took place in Uttar Pradesh‘s Unnao in which 18 people were killed and 19 injured when a double-decker sleeper bus headed for Delhi hit a milk tanker on the Agra-Lucknow Expressway. The accident occurred around 5am near Jojikot village in Behta Mujhawar police station area.
District magistrate Gaurang Rathi said it appeared that the bus, which was coming from Motihari in Bihar, was speeding and hit the milk tanker from behind. A probe has been launched into the matter, he said.
Rathi said 20 passengers who sustained minor injuries were sent to Delhi in another bus, which was carrying 60 people.
Additional director general of police, Lucknow, SB Shiradkar told news agency PTI that 14 men, three women and a child were killed in the accident.
Bangarmau Circle Officer (CO) Arvind Kumar said due to the collision, both the bus and milk tanker overturned. Drivers of the two vehicles were among the dead. He said the injured were rushed to a hospital and their condition was stated to be stable.
Glass shards and people’s belongings lay scattered on the highway next to the overturned bus and milk tanker. Cranes were used to put the two vehicles back on their wheels and they were later towed away.
The impact of the collision left the front portion of the bus badly mangled with one side ripped open.
Police had earlier said 14 bodies had been identified. However, they later said that only 10 had been identified so far.
Another injured, Chandni, said there were around 60 passengers in the bus and officials reached the accident spot an hour after the incident.
She thanked the local administration for facilitating a video call with her husband.
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath said officials have been instructed to ensure the best treatment for the injured.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh for the families of the deceased.
