At least 22 people were burnt to death and more than a dozen seriously injured when a U.P. State transport bus collided with a truck in Bareilly and caught fire on Sunday night.
The bus of the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation carrying 41 passengers, started from Delhi and was on its way to Gonda when the accident occurred near Invertis University in Bithari Chainpur police station in Bareilly on Sunday night. The authorities have failed to identify even a single body as yet.
Heart-rending, says PM
Prime Minister Narendrra Modi expressed his condolences and tweeted: “The bus accident in Bareilly is heart-rending. I condole the loss of lives. I pray that those injured recover at the earliest.”
According to eyewitnesses, the bus was running on the wrong side of the road when it collided with the truck after which the diesel tank of the bus burst. The bus caught fire immediately. Most of the passengers were sleeping and were burnt to death. Some passengers broke the windows and jumped out. Fire tenders reached the spot and controlled the fire but to no avail.
Dr. Shailesh Ranjan of the Bareilly district hospital told the media that the hospital received 22 bodies at 5:45 a.m. on Monday. “The bodies are badly charred. It is not possible even to recognise the gender of people. They will be identified through DNA test,” he said.
Senior Superintendent of the Police Jogendar Kumar told The Hindu, “The injured have been admitted to a local hospital.”
Mr. Modi announced a compensation of ₹2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund to the next of kin of the deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh to the kin of deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured.