Jaipur: In one of Rajasthan's worst road accidents, 28 people were killed on Monday when a bus packed with students and staff of a college plunged into a river in Sawai Madhopur district, police said.
The disaster left 34 people injured, 14 of them in serious condition.
The accident took place some 50 km from Sawai Madhopur town when the bus, with 62 students and staff of the Mother India Teacher Training College at Jhalawar, was coming from Mathura in Uttar Pradesh.
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Most victims were asleep when the bus rolled down from a bridge, after smashing through the railings, around 3.30 a.m.
'The bus fell in the Morel river,' Superintendent of Police Vikash Kumar said from near the accident site.
Among the first to reach the site were residents of the area. The police and others then joined the rescue operations.
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Minister for Information and Public Relations Ashok Bairwa said that 26 people died instantly and two others while being taken to a hospital in Kota.
Fourteen who were seriously injured were referred to a government hospital in Kota because the Sawai Madhopur hospital did not have 'proper medical facilities', he said.
'We are trying to give them the best medical aid,' Bairwa added. The Sawai Madhopur district will investigate what led to the crash.
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot expressed deep sorrow over the deaths and announced a compensation of Rs.50,000 to the next of the kin of the deceased and Rs.25,000 to the seriously injured.
Those who got minor injuries will get Rs.10,000.
Like most Indian states, Rajasthan too is notorious for road disasters.
In 2007, at least 100 people died when a truck fell into a gorge near Desuri Ki Naal village, around 150 km from Udaipur, in Rajsamand district.
The 16-wheeler truck was carrying around 200 pilgrims to the shrine of Ramdevra in Jaisalmer district when it fell off a hill road in the Aravali range.
In 2008, 24 people, including nine women and five children, were killed when their vehicle collided head on with a truck in Jodhpur district.
