JHARKHAND: At least 18 Hindu pilgrims were killed in a tragic road accident in eastern India on Tuesday after their bus collided with a truck carrying cooking gas cylinders.
Officials confirmed the incident, which left the bus severely mangled and partially burnt.
Local lawmaker Nishikant Dubey stated the pilgrims were en route to a shrine during the sacred month of Shravan, a period marked by monsoon rains.
“18 devotees lost their lives due to a bus and truck accident,“ Dubey posted on social media. The victims were transporting holy water from the Ganges as an offering to Lord Shiva.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident, calling it “extremely tragic” in an official statement. India records tens of thousands of road fatalities annually, with over 172,000 deaths reported in 2023 alone, according to transport minister Nitin Gadkari.
This crash follows another deadly accident in Uttarakhand last November, where 36 passengers died after a bus plunged into a ravine. – AFP
