Madhya Pradesh: 37 dead as bus falls into canal; rescue ops still on

At least 37 people, including 16 women, died after the bus they were travelling in fell off a bridge into a canal near Patna village in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district on Tuesday morning, a senior official said, adding that search operations are still going on.

After fishing out 18 bodies initially, rescuers have retrieved 19 more bodies until now, said Rewa Divisional Commissioner Rajesh Jain.

"A total of 37 bodies, including 16 women, 20 men and a child, have been fished out of the Bansagar canal until now," he said, adding that a magisterial probe has been ordered.

Prima facie, 44 passengers were travelling on the bus at the time of the accident, which occurred around 8:30 AM.

"Seven persons managed to swim to the banks of the canal after the incident and 37 bodies have been recovered.

The 44 passengers have been identified so far," Jain added.

Joga said seven persons swam to safety after the bus landed into the canal near Patna village, around 80 kms away from the Sidhi district headquarter, around 8:30 AM.

Sources said that at least 50 passengers were travelling in the ill-fated bus at the time of the accident.

Eye witnesses had said that the bus sank completely into the water and was not visible in the morning hours.

Later, the district administration stopped the release of water into the canal from the Banganga project, which brought the water level down.

The bus was then spotted at some distance away from the spot where it fell into the water, eye witnesses said.

The bus was retrieved out of the canal with the help of two cranes, officials said.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said he ordered to stop the water outflow from the Bansagar dam so that the water level in the canal can go down, which will aid in rescue operations.

He tweeted that teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and local authorities were conducting rescue operations at the spot.

Without specifying the number of the deceased, the chief minister said many "precious lives" were lost in the accident.

Expressing grief, the CM said he was praying for the safety of the missing persons.

Chouhan also said that efforts to save the missing passengers are underway.

"I am continuously monitoring the situation. I am in touch with senior officials engaged in the rescue work," he told reporters in Bhopal.

The chief minister also announced the ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to kin of each victim killed in the accident.

"I have also sent Water Resources Minister Tulsiram Silawat and MOS for Panchyat Ramkhelawan Patel to the spot in a state plane," Chouhan said.

Meanwhile, in view of the accident, the CM has cancelled the 'grih pravesh' or house-warming ceremony to be attended virtually by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Shah was scheduled to take part in this programme, scheduled to be held at 11 AM Minto Hall in Bhopal, for the beneficiaries of over one lakh houses constructed in Madhya Pradesh under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).

Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath has also expressed grief over the bus tragedy.