At least nine people were killed and 29 received injuries on Saturday, 31 December, when an SUV rammed into a luxury bus in Gujarat's Navsari district.
According to Navsari Superintendent of Police (SP) Rushikesh Upadhyay, the accident occurred when the bus was going towards Valsad, while the SUV was coming from the opposite direction, PTI reported.
"The driver of the SUV lost control over the vehicle, due to which it jumped the divider and crossed over to the other side before colliding with the luxury bus on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad national highway. The impact of the collision left the SUV completely mangled," Upadhyay said.
He further added that of the nine people travelling in the SUV, eight died on the spot, while the ninth passenger suffered grievous injuries. "One of the bus passengers was also killed in the accident," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the accident.
"Pained by the loss of lives due to a road accident in Navsari. My thoughts are with the bereaved families. I hope the injured recover soon. An ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. Those injured would be given Rs. 50,000," he tweeted.
The injured passengers are being treated in hospitals in Navsari and Valsad city, the police said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
A Navsari police official said that,
"Most of the passengers of the bus hailed from Valsad district, while those in the SUV were from different parts of the state, such as Bharuch, Junagadh, Rajkot and Surat. They worked in Ankleshwar in Bharuch district."
The police also confirmed that out of the nine killed in the accident, five were in their twenties.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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