Twelve women and a man were killed after the autorickshaw in which they were travelling collided with a speeding bus in Old Chawni area of Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday morning.
The accident took place at 5 a.m. on the Gwalior-Morena road when the bus driver apparently tried to avoid hitting a person on the road, said State Transport Minister Govind Singh Rajput while announcing an inquiry.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident in a tweet. “I am deeply pained by the death of 13 persons in an accident in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior. I express my condolences to the kin of those killed and pray for the speedy recovery of those injured,” Mr. Modi tweeted.
The women, who worked as cooks at an anganwadi kendra in Stone Park area in Old Chawni Ganga Malanpur locality, were returning home after work, Gwalior Collector Kaushlendra Vikram Singh said.
The victims were residents of Gole ka Mandir and Jaderua areas in Gwalior. They were supposed to travel in two autorickshaws, but one of them was out of order, so they crammed into one vehicle, Mr. Singh said.
Bus passengers unhurt
While eight women and the autorickshaw driver died on the spot, the others succumbed to injuries in a hospital, District Superintendent of Police Amit Sanghi said.
Passengers in the bus escaped unhurt, a senior official said, adding that the driver fled the spot leaving behind the vehicle.
The Prime Minister approved an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh each for the kin of the deceased and ₹50,000 for those injured seriously from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund, the PMO said.
Expressing grief, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also announced an ex gratia of ₹4 lakh for the kin of the deceased.
“It appears that the accident took place as the bus driver, while trying to save a milkman, hit the autorickshaw,” Mr. Rajput said. He added that the bus had a valid fitness certificate, insurance certificate and its permit was valid till 2026.
Transport Commissioner Mukesh Jain, who reached the spot to conduct an inquiry, clarified that the Gwalior RTO had not been suspended as the probe was going on. “Till we get the inquiry report, no action will be taken against any official,” he said.
Rajya Sabha member and BJP leader Jyotiraditya Scindia and State Congress president Kamal Nath also condoled the deaths.
