Bihar: 56 kanwariyas from Nepal injured after tourist bus rams into truck

At least 56 kanwariyas were injured on Thursday after their bus collided with a stationary truck. The devotees were on their way to Deoghar in Jharkhand from Nepal’s Sonauli.

The incident took place when the bus they were travelling in collided with a truck on NH-27 near Bhoptapur under Kuchaikot police station in Gopalganj district.

Seven of them were said to be in a critical condition.

The front portion of the bus was badly mangled after the collision.

Passengers stuck inside the bus were rescued by passers-by and police.

One of the injured woman, identified as Sanichri Devi, who was undergoing treatment at a local hospital, said the devotees were going to Deoghar from Sonauli to offer prayers at Baidyanath Temple when the mishap took place.

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As the bus approached Bhoptapur at around 8am, a tanker while overtaking the bus took a steep turn after which the driver lost control and the bus collided with a parked truck, the woman said.

The injured were admitted to Gopalganj Sadar hospital and Kuchaikot community health centre.

Gopalganj SP Anand Kumar said preliminary inquiry revealed that the private bus driver had lost control over the steering wheel at high speed, as a result of which the bus crashed into the parked truck. All 56 passengers in the private bus were Baidyanath devotees. The police reached the spot as soon as they received a call and rescue work began thereafter. With the help of cranes and earth moving machines, the bus and truck were separated after which the traffic movement was facilitated.

“The district administration team is present at the accident site. The bus has been removed. I am in constant touch with the Gopalganj administration. Instructions have been given to make arrangements for proper treatment of the injured,” said excise and prohibition minister Sunil Kumar.