Ahmedabad: At least 21 passengers were killed and over 50 others injured when a packed private luxury bus overturned Monday evening in a hilly area in Banaskantha district of North Gujarat, officials stated.
The ghastly mishap took place at Trishulia Ghat, a hilly patch on the Ambaji-Danta road near Ambaji town of Banaskantha district, around 160km from here, when the victims were returning home after visiting a temple, they said.
The private luxury bus, carrying around 75 passengers, tipped over at Trishulia Ghat after the driver lost control over the vehicle due to heavy rains in the area, Banaskantha district SP Ajit Rajian stated.
“Twenty one persons travelling in a private bus died after the vehicle overturned at Trishulia Ghat. The bus driver lost control due to heavy rains as the tyres slipped on the road when brakes were applied. We pulled out 53 persons alive from the bus using a crane,” informed Ajit Rajian. “These injured passengers were referred to Danta town’s referral hospital and Palanpur civil hospital,” the SP added.
The SP along with District Collector Sandip Sagale rushed to Danta hospital after the accident. According to Sagale, 35 of the 53 injured are in critical condition and have been referred to the civil hospital at Palanpur, the administrative headquarters of the district, from Danta.
“We have deployed more doctors at both the hospitals to treat the injured and carry out post-mortem. All the passengers were residents of Anklav village of Anand taluka and were returning after visiting Ambaji temple,” informed Sagale.
The Trishulia Ghat is the same spot, where nine people had lost their lives in June last when a multi-utility vehicle overturned after its brakes failed at a sharp turn. Sagale said the Gujrat government is planning to convert the road passing through the Trishulia Ghat into a four-lane pathway.
Agencies
