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Five killed in private bus collision on Ambala-Chandigarh highway
At least 10 passengers injured as three buses involved in accident on Ambala-Chandigarh highway early on Monday
At least five people were killed and nine were injured in a collision of two private buses on Ambala-Chandigarh highway near Healing Touch Hospital early on Monday.
Officials said a bus bearing Haryana number hit an Uttar Pradesh-registered tourist bus from behind at around 3am, killing five people, including a woman. The accident took place around 10km away from the district headquarters.
Both the buses were plying between Jammu and New Delhi and most of the commuters included labourers and their families, said Baldev Nagar police station in-charge inspector Ajaib Singh.
The deceased included Meena Devi and Rohit Kumar of Chhattisgarh, Rahul Kumar of Jharkhand, and Pradeep of Uttar Pradesh, who all died at the spot, and an unidentified man (presumed to be the conductor of the Haryana bus) who died during treatment at civil hospital, an official statement issued by the administration reads.
“All the injured were taken to hospital from where two were referred to PGIMS, Chandigarh due to their critical condition. Most of the injured are from Uttar Pradesh or Chhattisgarh,” the statement added.
An FIR was lodged at Baldev Nagar police station under Sections 279, 337 and 304A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the unknown driver on complaint of Androz Singh, of Gaya in Bihar.
He told the police that he and his cousin Rahul were working at a sweets shop in Baramulla and had boarded the bus from Jammu at 3pm on Sunday. “At around 3am, a speeding bus hit our bus from behind killing four in our bus, including my cousin. The driver of the bus fled, leaving the vehicle behind,” the FIR copy read.
Injured said the collision was so intense that they fell from the sleeper cabin. One of the commuters travelling to Delhi and further to Gorakhpur in UP said most of them were sleeping when the accident took place.
MLA Aseem Goel said he has instructed doctors to take care of the food and other requirements of the injured. “We will take care of their return expenses when they are discharged and ensure that there is no problem in their treatment at the hospital,” the BJP legislator said.
