BHOPAL: At least four schoolchildren died and at least eight others were injured in an early morning road accident in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain district on Monday, authorities said.
The accident took place at Jhirniya Fanta in the industrial town of Nagada in Ujjain at around 7.30 am. The vehicle carrying pupils of Fatima Convent School and a truck were involved in the collision.
Four students died instantly, officials said, adding that at least eight others injured in the accident were under treatment at hospitals in Nagada and Ujjain, besides Bombay Hospital in Indore.
Those who died were identified as Bhavyansh Jain (13), Sumit (15), Uma (15) and Inaya (6). Three of them belong to the Unhel town of Ujjain.
According to Ujjain district collector Ashish Singh, the school vehicle carried 15 occupants, including the driver.
“The drivers of both the vehicles have been taken into custody and investigations are on. Right now our focus is to save the lives of injured students,” said Singh.
The Ujjain District Police Superintendent, Satyendra Shukla, said the school education and transport departments will investigate whether the school had made adequate safety provisions for the students in accordance with the Supreme Court directions meant for school buses/vehicles.
“Legal action will follow if lapses are found during the probe,” said the police officer.