Amaravati:
Fourteen people travelling in a jeep were killed when a speeding private bus collided with the vehicle in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh Saturday, police said.
Another six passengers in the jeep sustained injuries and have been hospitalised, police said.
The victims, all related to each other, were identified as villagers of Ramavaram in Gadwal district of neighbouring Telangana state.
They were returing home after attending a marriage when the mishap took place.
Some passengers in the bus received minor injuries, police said.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and leader of the Opposition Y S Jaganmohan Reddy expressed shock over the accident.
Police said the luxury bus, proceeding from Hyderabad to Bengaluru, collided with the jeep that swerved into the other side of the highway in a bid to avoid a two-wheeler.
As the bus was cruising at high speed, the impact of the collision was heavy and left 10 dead on the spot, police said.
“The jeep was badly mangled and many other passengers were trapped inside.We have pulled out four injured passengers so far and shifted them to the government hospital in Kurnool for treatment,” a senior police official said over phone.
Police said the toll could increase.
Deputy Chief Minister (Home) N China Rajappa spoke to Kurnool district Superintendent of Police K Fakeerappa and enquired about the accident.
He asked the SP to ensure better medical care to the injured passengers.
A Hyderabad report said Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao Saturday expressed shock over the deaths and conveyed his condolences to members of the bereaved families.
He directed the Collector of Jogulamba-Gadwal district to provide better medical treatment to those injured, a release from the Chief Minister’s office said.
The ruling TRS working president K T Rama Rao, state Congress president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, Jana Sena Party founder Pawan Kalyan expressed grief over the accident.
Reddy demanded that the Telangana government provide compensation to the families of the deceased, a Congress press release said.
