Andhra: School bus falls into a canal, 16 students killed

At least 16 students were killed and 18 others injured when the school bus carrying them fell into a canal in Andhra Pradesh's Khammam district on Tuesday afternoon.
 
The bus, carrying students of the LV Reddy school of Vepalagandla village, met with the accident when the driver, while trying to avoid a speeding bike coming from the opposite direction, lost control of the vehicle. The bus fell off a bridge in to the canal.
 
The accident occurred at Raghavapuram village near Kottagudem. The bus was carrying 40 children to drop them off at their respective villages.
 
Rescue teams rushed

from the nearby Singareni Collieries to help the local administration. According to the police, 18 children were injured and they have been admitted to different hospitals in the area.
 
Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy expressed his deep shock and anguish over the accident and directed the district collector to take immediate steps to provide necessary assistance to the accident victims.
 
He also asked the officials to render all assistance to the family members of the deceased children. He termed the incident as most unfortunate and asked the collector to enquire into the incident and submit a detailed report.