BENGALURU: A private sleeper coach caught fire in the early hours of Thursday after colliding with a truck near Gorlath Cross in Hiriyur Taluk on National Highway 48. Sources said more than 20 passengers were burned alive.The accident occurred around at 3am.Police and fire personnel had retrieved nine bodies from the bus by 8 am. Several others sustained serious injuries and were admitted to a local hospital.
The truck, reportedly heading to Bengaluru from Hiriyur, jumped the divider and collided with a bus travelling from Bengaluru to Gokarna. The impact caused the sleeper coach to ignite in the middle of the road. Preliminary reports suggest negligence by the truck driver, identified as Kuldeep, who died in the accident. The bus carried 29 passengers—15 women and 14 men—out of its 32 seats. Most were from Gokarna (25), with two each from Kumta and Shivamogga. The bus driver, conductor, and a few others escaped by jumping out. SP Ranjith visited the site to oversee the investigation, and a complaint has been registered at Hiriyur Rural Police Station. The crash caused a traffic jam of approximately 30 kilometres, with vehicles backed up to Shiravara.
Deeply saddened: PM ModiReacting to the incident, PMO in a tweet said, "deeply saddened by the loss of lives due to a mishap in the Chitradurga district of Karnataka. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May those injured recover at the earliest. An ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000."Tamil Nadu AccidentIn a separate incident, 9 people were killed on Wednesday after a state-run bus swerved into oncoming traffic and collided with two vehicles on a national highway in Tamil Nadu, police said. The Chennai-bound bus from Tiruchirappalli reportedly changed direction after one of its tyres burst, causing the driver to lose control. The bus climbed onto the road median and crossed into the opposite lane before hitting a sports utility vehicle and a car travelling towards Tiruchirappalli. Seven of those killed were occupants of the two private vehicles, police said. The remaining victims were yet to be formally identified. Four others, including two children, sustained serious injuries and are being treated at government hospitals.