Twenty-five passengers were charred to death when the private bus they were travelling in caught fire after hitting a pole and a divider on the Nagpur-Mumbai 'Samruddhi Expressway' in eastern Maharashtra's Buldhana district in the early hours of Saturday, police said.
Eight persons, including the driver and 'cleaner' (driver's assistant) survived. A case for negligent driving was registered against the driver with police believing, prima facie, that he dozed off and lost control of the vehicle.
The private sleeper coach bus was on its way to Pune from Nagpur when it met with the accident around 1.30 am at Pimpalkhuta village near Sindkhedraja, 130 km from Nagpur.
"After hitting the pole and divider, the bus overturned and fell on its right side with its entry/exit door facing the sky. Within minutes, the vehicle caught fire. Some of the passengers were able to come out through broken windows from the rear side," a senior police official from Buldhana said.
As most victims' bodies were charred beyond recognition, the authorities have decided to conduct DNA testing to identify them before handing them over to the relatives.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde ordered a probe into the accident and announced an ex-gratia assistance of Rs five lakh for the families of each deceased.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other leaders expressed grief over the loss of life.
A case was registered against the driver after questioning, said Buldhana Superintendent of Police Sunil Kadasne.
The bus belonging to Vidarbha Travels had left Nagpur for Pune at 4 pm on Friday. It stopped at Karanja in Yavatmal district for dinner.
After the halt, the bus travelled around 150 kilometres in about two and a half hours at average speed of 60-70 kilometres per hour, said a police official.
“The speed of the vehicle may not be the issue,” he said, adding that prima facie it seems to be the result of a "human error".
“The driver might have nodded off. The bus went to the right side and first hit the crash barrier and then the divider,” he said.
A local resident said the survivors told him that they sought help from passengers of other passing vehicles on the highway, but nobody stopped.
The driver claimed that there was a tyre burst, officials said. But Amravati Regional Transport Office (RTO) stated in its report that it could not have caused the accident as there were no pieces of rubber or tyre markings at the scene indicating a tyre burst.
PM Modi had inaugurated the 520-km-long phase-1 of the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Mahamarg in December last year.
CM Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited the accident site in the afternoon.
The shell of the completely burnt bus could be seen lying at the site with some half-burnt bags and mobile chargers of passengers scattered around.
Shinde termed the accident as "unfortunate" and stressed the need for drivers on the expressway to exercise caution while driving.
Speaking to reporters at the accident site, he said measures would be taken to prevent accidents on the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway.
"So far, most of the accidents on the Samruddhi Expressway have occurred due to human errors. But the government has taken this accident seriously and steps will be taken to ensure that accidents and errors don't happen," he said.
In a tweet, President Murmu said, "The heart-wrenching tragedy in Buldhana, Maharashtra, claiming many precious lives, including children and women, is extremely disturbing. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families..."
PM Modi tweeted, "Deeply saddened by the devastating bus mishap in Buldhana, Maharashtra. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of those who lost their lives. May the injured recover soon. The local administration is providing all possible assistance to the affected."
Home Minister Shah described the accident as heart-breaking. "In this hour of grief, my thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives in this tragic accident," he tweeted in Hindi.
Union minister Nitin Gadkari said in a tweet that the death of passengers in the accident was very unfortunate, painful and tragic.
Fadnavis told reporters that as per the preliminary information given by the Buldhana SP, after the Vidarbha Travels-operated bus hit a pole, its diesel tank burst, leading to fire.
A "smart system" is being installed on the expressway to prevent accidents, he added.
"Only vehicle error and human error have been noticed in the accidents that occurred on the expressway so far," said Fadnavis who holds the home portfolio.
Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray accused the government of not doing anything to stop accidents on the Samruddhi Expressway.
The Buldhana accident should serve as an eye opener for the government as more than 300 people have lost their lives on the expressway since it was inaugurated last year, he said.
NCP chief Sharad Pawar expressed grief over the tragedy and said the government needs to take steps to curb the speed limit of private vehicles.
In an acerbic comment, Pawar said people now describe deaths in accidents on the expressway as "Devendra-wasis".
The 701-kilometre Samruddhi Mahamarg, presently operational on a stretch from Nagpur to Bharvir in Nashik district, is considered the brainchild of Fadnavis who was chief minister of the state from 2014 to 2019.
