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23 die as bus hits truck
Bodies of bus accident victims kept outside a police station at Bilasipara in Assam's Dhubri district on Tuesday.
Guwahati: Twenty three passengers, including five women and six children, were killed and 44 injured when a bus hit a stationary truck in lower Assam’s Dhubri district in the early hours of Tuesday.
Dhrubi district Superintendent of Police Partha Sarathi Mahanta told The Hindu that the accident occurred near Beltoli village along National Highway 31. The overcrowded bus was taking brick kiln workers from the district to Hojai in Nagaon district.
Three of the injured were discharged from the hospital. Seven were referred to the Guwahati Medical College Hospital. The condition of 10 others is said to be critical.
The bus started its journey from Kumarganj, about 70 km from the accident site, around 9.30 p.m. on Monday. After a halt at Gauripur for an hour it resumed its journey with 67 passengers around 11.30 p.m.
The accident took place at 12.35 a.m.
The bus had a capacity of only 35 passengers.
Police said the driver lost control and hit the truck laden with potato from the rear. Fifteen passengers died on the spot.
The workers belonged to Dhubri and Kokrajhar districts.
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