BALASORE: At least four pilgrims, including a woman, from Uttar Pradesh died and 16 others sustained injuries in an accident on NH-16 in Balasore district in the wee hours of Saturday.
Police sources said the mishap occurred when 55 pilgrims were on their way to Puri to visit Lord Jagannath temple and the ill-fated bus fell from a height of 20-ft and turned turtle on a crop field at Chalanti bypass under Jaleswar police limits.
The deceased have been identified as Raj Prasad Yadav, Rajesh Mishra, Santaram Yadav and Kamala Devi. The condition of seven pilgrims is stated to be critical.
Upon information, local police and fire fighting personnel reached the spot and rescued the injured pilgrims, who were trapped under the bus. All the injured people have been shifted to Fakir Mohan Medical College and Hospital at Balasore.
Dilip Kumar Sahoo, sub-divisional police officer of Jaleswar, said that there were 57 people, including driver and helper, in the bus and they were en-route to Puri to visit the holy place.
"The pilgrims had left UP on September 18 and they had already visited several places in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. They were all sleeping when the mishap took place. Preliminary investigation suggests that reckless driving might have caused the mishap," he said.
The SDPO said that a case has been registered and the ill-fated vehicle has been seized with the help of a JCB machine. The owner of the bus and family members of the deceased have been informed. The bodies have been sent for postmortem.
The bus driver allegedly fled the scene. Despite the loss of four lives, the remaining passengers were safely rescued, with the help of local volunteers and organisations. A case was registered and vehicle seized with the help of a JCB machine.
The bus owner and family members of the deceased were intimated and bodies sent for post-mortem. Arrangements have been made to transport them to their homes in Uttar Pradesh.
Commerce and Transport minister Bibhuti Bhushan Jena expressed deep sorrow over the tragic accident. Departmental officers and local authorities provided comprehensive assistance to the victims under the guidance of transport commissioner Amitabh Thakur, Balasore collector and SP.
The transport department has made arrangements for the safe return of the passengers to UP once they recover, the transport commissioner added. Senior officials from the state transport authority, crash investigation team, local RTO, and police are investigating the accident’s cause.