Image Source: AGENCIES

WATSUPPTODAY DESK
09-05-2023

Fifteen people were killed and 20 to 25 others injured after a bus fell from a bridge on a dry river bed in Madhya Pradesh's Khargone district on Tuesday morning, state Home Minister Narottam Mishra said. A magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident which took place at 8.40 am, he said. The bus broke railings of Dasanga bridge and fell on a dry bed of the Borad river near Dongargaon village, Mishra told reporters. The bus was carrying around 50 passengers when it met with the accident, a police official said. "Fifteen people were killed and nearly 20-25 others were injured in the accident," Mishra said. The injured persons were admitted to the district hospital in Khargone, he said. A magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident, Mishra said. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced an ex-gratia of Rs four lakh to the kin of each of those killed in the accident. The seriously injured persons will be given Rs 50,000 and those who received minor injuries will be given Rs 25,000, Mishra said. The state government will bear entire expenses of the treatment, he added. After the bus fell from the bridge, some villagers rushed to the spot. They pulled out people trapped inside the bus from the windows and backside of the vehicle, as per eyewitnesses. Locals were also seen carrying people and offering water to the harried passengers amid the hot weather, they said. Khargone Collector Shivraj Singh Verma, Superintendent of Police Dharamvir Singh and local MLA Ravi Joshi were among those who reached the spot soon after getting information about the accident. Former Union minister Arun Yadav, who belongs to Khargone, also expressed grief over the incident.