An apple-laden truck rammed into a bus carrying pilgrims from Maharashtra here, injuring 38 passengers, police said on Monday. The accident occurred around 1 am when the bus carrying more than 50 pilgrims was coming from Kalyan in Maharashtra.
Among the injured were several women, the local police said. "With police assistance, the injured were transported to the local community health centre. Nine passengers with serious injuries were referred to Sultanpur District Medical College for further treatment," a police official said.
Police Circle Officer (Lambhua) Abdus Salam said the bus had left Maharashtra approximately 15 days ago, with pilgrims bound for religious sites in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
"After visiting temples in Ujjain and other destinations in Madhya Pradesh, the bus entered Uttar Pradesh. Following a stop for dinner, the bus departed from Ayodhya for Kashi," he said.
"Around 1 am, the driver parked the bus near a tea shop along the Sultanpur-Varanasi four-lane road, behind the Muslim cemetery in Lambhua Nagar Panchayat, and stepped out with an assistant to get tea while most passengers were asleep inside," the officer said. At this time, a truck loaded with apples rammed into the the parked bus, he added.
The police control room dispatched ambulances and officers to the site. All the injured were taken to the community health centre for treatment. The truck driver fled the scene, but the truck has been seized, and police are conducting further legal action, he added. PTI