GOLAGHAT/JORHAT (Assam), 3 Jan: At least 12 people, including three children, were killed and 38 others suffered injuries in a head-on collision between a coal-laden truck and a bus in Golaghat district of Assam on Wednesday, officials said.
The accident took place at Balijan near Dergaon on National Highway-715 when the bus with 49 people on board collided with the goods vehicle, Golaghat district commissioner P. Uday Praveen told PTI.
“Out of the 12 people who died, six were women. All of them were from Basa Bharaluwa village,” he said.
“A total of 31 people are undergoing treatment at Jorhat Medical College and Hospital (JMCH), while seven others with minor injuries have been admitted to Dergaon Community Health Centre,” Praveen said.
President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the loss of lives in the accident, and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.
JMCH superintendent Dr. Purnima Barua told PTI that four persons, including two minors, are in critical condition at the Intensive Care Unit.
According to an official from the Dergaon police station, the accident took place around 4:30 am when the bus, which was on its way to Tilinga Mandir in Tinsukia district for a picnic, collided with the truck.
“The truck was coming from the direction of Jorhat and on the wrong side, as a portion of the four-lane highway was damaged. The bus was on the right track. There was fog and both the vehicles were speeding,” he said.
The stretch of the highway where the accident took place has been cleared for normal vehicular movement, an official added. (PTI)
