At least 18 people died, and 19 were injured as a sleeper bus rammed into a milk tanker on the Lucknow-Agra expressway in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao district on Wednesday morning.
The incident took place near Gadha village when the bus travelling from Bihar to Delhi collided with the tanker while attempting to overtake. The impact of the collision caused the bus to overturn.
According to officials, the bus was carrying mostly migrant workers.
All the injured persons have been rushed to nearby hospitals for treatment. Out of the 19 people, three are said to be in a critical condition.
The authorities have identified two deceased victims - Rajnish Kumar (26) and Mohd Shamim (28), both hailing from Bihar. The process of identification of other victims is underway.
The local authorities have launched a rescue operation. The Unnao administration has also issued helpline numbers - (0515-2970767, 9651432703, 9454417447, 8887713617, 8081211289).
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the loss of lives in the incident and announced an ex-gratia of ₹two lakh from PMNRF for the next of kin of each deceased and ₹50,000 to the injured.
“The road accident in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh is extremely painful. My condolences to those who have lost their loved ones in this. May God give them strength in this difficult time. Along with this, I wish for the speedy recovery of the injured. Under the supervision of the state government, the local administration is engaged in helping the victims in every possible way,” he wrote on X.
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge also condoled the loss of lives in the incident and wished for a speedy recovery of the injured people. He also appealed to all the workers of the INDIA bloc parties to provide all possible help to the victims.
“The news of the death of 18 people in a tragic road accident on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway in Unnao, UP is very sad. We express our deepest condolences to the bereaved families of the victims. We wish for the speedy recovery of all those injured in the accident. The administration is requested not to leave any stone unturned in helping the victims,”
Source: Hindustan Time
BDST: 1343 HRS, JULY 10, 2024
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