At least 17 people were killed and six injured in a road accident on the Kanpur-Allahabad highway in the Sachendi area of this Uttar Pradesh district late on Tuesday evening, police said.
Two among the injured are said to be critical, they added.
Kanpur Outer’s Superintendent of Police (SP) Ashtbhuja Prasad Singh said the accident occurred in the Kisan Nagar area when a speeding bus hit a loader, which fell on the other side of the highway, while the bus also overturned and fell into a ditch.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced an ex-gratia amount of ₹2 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased and ordered an inquiry into the incident.
The collision was so strong that almost all passengers of both the vehicles got trapped and some of them died on the spot, the SP said.
While 10 people died on the spot, seven succumbed to injuries while being taken to hospital or during treatment, the SP said.
Over 70 bus passengers had sustained minor injuries, he added.
A heavy police force, comprising personnel from half-a-dozen police stations, was dispatched to the site of the accident.
The policemen extricated the passengers and found that many of them were already dead.
An official spokesperson in Lucknow said the Chief Minister has expressed grief over the loss of lives in the road accident in Kanpur and directed senior officials to immediately rush to the spot.
He has announced an ex-gratia amount of ₹2 lakh each to the kin of the deceased, and asked the district administration to conduct an inquiry into the reasons behind the accident and submit a report, the spokesperson said.
The Chief Minister has also directed for extending immediate help and ensuring proper treatment to the injured persons.
