22 killed and 64 injured in nine Uttar Pradesh road accidents
Multiple crashes occurred across the state on Monday, including a fatal car fire in Muzaffarnagar and a bus accident on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway.
At least 22 people died and 64 others sustained injuries in nine separate road accidents across Uttar Pradesh on Monday, according to ThePrint. Many of the crashes took place during the early morning hours, a day after Diwali celebrations.
The most fatal incident occurred near Jagahedi village in Muzaffarnagar around 4.45 am on the Panipat-Khatima highway. Six residents of Hisar in Haryana, including driver Sahil (22), died after their car hit a divider and an electric pole, overturned, and caught fire.
In Chitrakoot, four people, including two children, were killed and 12 were injured when a tractor-trolley overturned near Ramnagar. District Magistrate Pulkit Garg stated the vehicle's coupling mechanism came off, causing it to lose control.
A bus travelling from Rajasthan to Bihar also crashed on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway near Zero Point around 6 am. Three people died and 41 were injured after the vehicle veered into a ditch, according to Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak.
Other fatalities were reported in Shahjahanpur, where a bus conductor and helper were killed by a truck on the Ganga Expressway, and in Jalaun, following a collision between a car and a motorcycle.
Authorities suspect that reduced visibility caused by winter onset and pollution may have contributed to the accidents. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath offered condolences and instructed officials to assist the victims' families.