Anand, Sep 30 (IANS): Five people were killed and five others injured after a private luxury bus collided with a truck on the Ahmedabad-Vadodara Expressway in Gujarat’s Anand district at around 4 a.m. on Wednesday, police said. Reacting to the news, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths of the five people in the accident and prayed for the speedy recovery of those injured in the mishap.
“Deeply saddened by the loss of lives in a mishap in Anand, Gujarat. Condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for the speedy recovery of all those injured,” PM Modi said in a post on X.
The bus collided with the truck on the expressway when the bus was attempting to overtake the truck.
Anand Superintendent of Police, G.G. Jasani, said the bus was carrying around 30 to 40 passengers when the collision took place.
The Sai Darshan Travels bus had departed from Surat for Rajasthan and was travelling from Anand towards Nadiad when it collided with the truck. Most of the passengers were asleep at the time of the accident.
The impact left several passengers trapped inside the damaged bus. After receiving information, police personnel and local residents reached the spot and launched rescue operations.
The injured were pulled out of the bus and shifted to a nearby hospital for treatment. The bodies of the deceased were sent for autopsy following the necessary inquest proceedings.
One of the injured passengers, Dhanesh Jadhav, said he had boarded the bus in Surat and was asleep when he was suddenly jolted awake by the sound of the collision.
“Panic and confusion spread among the passengers immediately after the crash,” he said.
The accident also disrupted traffic movement on the expressway for some time. Police cleared the damaged vehicles from the road and restored traffic movement.
Police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the circumstances leading to the collision, including the bus driver’s attempt to overtake the truck.
