As many as 15 people were killed and 40 others injured after a bus crashed into a truck parked along a busy stretch in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh in the small hours of Saturday.
The tragedy occurred near Suhagi Pahari in Rewa district, some 600km from Madhya Pradesh’s capital Bhopal, when a group of 100 migrant workers was returning to their home district of Uttar Pradesh in northern India for Diwali (festival of lights) on that ill-fated bus.
"The bus hit the truck from behind at high speed after its driver failed to spot the parked vehicle. The impact of the collision was so strong that 15 passengers died on the spot," a senior police officer told the local media.
Those injured were taken to a hospital in Suhagi. "Few with serious injuries were later shifted to Rewa's Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital," he said.
A probe has been ordered into the accident; the officer added.
Road accidents are common in India, with one taking place every four minutes. These accidents are often blamed on poor roads, rash driving and scant regard for traffic laws.
The Indian government's implementation of stricter traffic laws in recent years has failed to rein in accidents, which claim over 100,000 lives every year.
