At least 26 killed in minibus and truck collision near Kaziranga
The accident occurred on National Highway 715 in Assam's Golaghat district after a minibus collided head-on with a container truck.
At least 26 people, including women, children and college students, died after a minibus collided head-on with a container truck near Rangajan in Assam on Friday, according to The New Indian Express. The accident took place on National Highway 715 near Hathikuli Tea Estate in the Kohora range, close to Kaziranga National Park.
The minibus was travelling from Golaghat towards Nagaon, while the container truck was heading towards Upper Assam. At least 20 others were injured in the crash. Some of the injured are being treated at Bokakhat Civil Hospital, Jorhat Medical College and Hospital, and Kohora Model Hospital.
Police suspect the minibus was travelling at a very high speed in violation of restrictions near the park and that the driver lost control. A Golaghat District Transport Office official stated the vehicle, registered to Anjir Ali of Nagaon, had previously been fined for overspeeding in Jorhat and Kaziranga.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed anguish over the mishap and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for each injured person from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the priority is ensuring the injured receive medical care. He stated he would visit Kaziranga on Saturday. Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Atul Bora was supervising relief and rescue operations.
The Golaghat district administration will conduct an enquiry to determine if the vehicles violated traffic norms, such as speed limits or passenger capacity. Postmortem examinations are scheduled to take place at Swahid Kushal Konwar Civil Hospital in Golaghat.