11 dead as van hits bike, lands in water-filled well in Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur

A speeding van plunged into a water-filled well after hitting a bike in Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur district on Sunday, leaving 11 persons, including a biker and a rescuer, dead, police said.

The incident occurred in the Narayangarh police station area.

Ratlam range Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Manoj Singh said 13 persons were travelling in the van.

“Four of them were rescued while nine others died. A villager, identified as Manohar, who descended into the well for rescue, also died,” he said, adding that the body of a victim of the accident is yet to be pulled out of the well.

Prima facie, the van driver lost control of the wheel after the vehicle hit a bike and fell into the well. The bike rider was also killed, he said.

A rescue operation, involving the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and personnel of other units, is under way.

Deputy Chief Minister Jagdish Devda, who rushed to the site, said the driver apparently lost control of the vehicle, causing it to veer off the road and land into a well.