18 killed, over 30 injured as truck rams into bus
PM, CM express grief, announce ex gratia
LUCKNOW: At least 18 people were killed and 30 others injured when a truck collided with a stationary bus in Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki district early on Wednesday, police said.
President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, Union home minister Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have condoled the deaths.
The double-decker bus with 140 labourers on board was on its way from Palwal (Haryana) carrying labourers working in Punjab and Haryana to their home state Bihar. It was parked on the roadside after breaking down when the truck rammed into it and left the 18 passengers standing or resting near the vehicle dead.
The impact of the collision was so strong that bodies of those killed were disfigured beyond recognition. Police teams were only able to identify the bodies of 12 deceased, by the time this report was filed. The injured were rushed to hospitals in Barabanki and Lucknow by the rescuers.
Additional director general of police (Lucknow zone) SN Sabat said the truck rammed into the bus near Ram Sanehi Ghat in Barabanki. He added a police team was rushed to the spot to undertake rescue work.
In a tweet, President Kovind said, “Deeply pained by the news of the untimely death of many people in a road accident in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh. In this hour of grief, I express my deepest condolences to the bereaved families and wish the injured a speedy recovery.”
Expressing grief over the deaths, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced ₹2 lakh each compensation for the families of those killed in the accident and ₹50,000 each for the kin of the injured.
“PM @narendramodi announced ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh each from Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of those who lost their lives in the tragic accident in Barabanki. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000 each,” the Prime Minister’s Office tweeted.
Officials said Modi also spoke to chief minister Yogi Adityanath about the accident.
“The chief minister has also expressed his condolences and directed the DM (district magistrate and) SP (superintendent of police) Barabanki to provide the best medical care to the injured and to make arrangements to take the passengers to their destinations,” said Uttar Pradesh’s additional chief secretary (home) Awanish Kumar Awasthi.
Some of the passengers told police that over 60 passengers of a different bus were accommodated in the bus at Palwal by the driver and the conductor. The bus, which was extremely overloaded, broke its axel on the road.
The air-conditioned bus didn’t have windows, forcing the suffocating passengers to alight from the bus and wait while the driver tried to call a mechanic. Tired from the journey, some of the passengers slept under and beside the bus.
These passengers had no chance to escape when the truck hit the bus from behind. Most of those killed were from Madhepura, Supaul, Saharsa and Sitamarhi districts of Bihar.
Officials said Adityanath also directed that financial assistance be provided to the kin of those killed in the accident. On his directions, three ministers —health minister Jai Pratap Singh, urban development minister Ashutosh Tandon ‘Gopal’ and jal shakti minister Mahendra Singh — are on their way to King George’s Medical University in Lucknow to oversee the treatment of those injured in the accident.
“The deaths of people in a road accident in Ram Sanehi Ghat area of Barabanki district is very sad. My condolences are with the bereaved families. Praying to Lord Shri Ram to grant the departed souls a place at his feet and speedy recovery to the injured,” Adityanath tweeted in Hindi.
Union home minister Amit Shah also expressed grief over the deaths.