8 dead as bus hits water tanker on Agra-Lucknow Expressway

Eight people died and about a dozen were injured when their bus collided with a water tanker irrigating plants on the Agra-Lucknow Expressway on Friday, police said.

The accident occurred around 2 pm in Sakrawa area here when the bus was en route to Delhi from Lucknow, Kannauj Superintendent of Police Amit Kumar Anand said.

"Eight passengers died in the accident and around a dozen injured passengers are receiving treatment at the Saifai Medical College, near Etawah," he said.

Other passengers, who were not injured, were sent to their destinations in another bus, he added.

State Minister for Jal Shakti Swatantra Dev Singh, who was passing by at the time of the accident, stopped his convoy to assist in rescuing the injured and ensuring their transportation to the hospital.

“Senior police and administrative officials have reached the spot and they have been instructed to provide the best of medical treatment to the injured," Singh told PTI.

“It's an unfortunate incident. We need to be more careful on roads and adhere to traffic rules and safety measures,” he added.

Citing his interaction with the injured passengers, the minister said the bus driver was apparently drowsy and that might have led to the crash.