Expert panel on MP bus accident recommend steps to prevent such incidents

A committee of experts was formed to conduct a probe into the cause of a bus accident that claimed 15 lives and injured 40 people here and to make recommendations to avoid such incidents in future

The Rewa district administration has formed a committee of experts to conduct a probe into the cause of a bus accident that claimed 15 lives and injured 40 people here and to make recommendations to avoid such incidents in future, officials said on Sunday.

Out of the injured people, 32 have so far left for their homes in UP, a police official said.

The accident took place around 11.30 pm on Friday near Teonthar town when the bus, mostly carrying labourers and going to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh from Hyderabad, rammed into a trailer-truck from behind while negotiating the slope of a mountain road at Sohagi Ghati in Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh.

Earlier also some accidents had taken place on the road, an official said.

"The district administration has formed a committee to look into the cause of the accident and prevent its recurrence on the mountain road in Sohagi Ghati, Superintendent of Police Navneet Bhasin told PTI over phone.

A sub-divisional magistrate, sub-divisional officer of police, regional transport officer and other experts will be members of the committee, he said.

The panel will examine the bus and check its fitness. It will also list ways to bring improvements on the road where the bus crashed, the official said.

A formal order on the formation of the committee would be out shortly, he added.

Rewa Collector Manoj Pushp said the committee will examine the bus and also study the road condition from different angles given some accidents had taken place on it earlier.

The committee would have an expert from the Government Engineering College at Rewa, the official said.

We want to ensure that such an accident does not reoccur, he added.

Meanwhile, 32 out of the 40 injured people have left for their homes since Saturday.

One more injured person would leave on Sunday after his family arrives here, Bhasin said.

President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Saturday expressed grief over the loss of lives in the bus accident.

Modi had also announced an ex-gratia of Rs two lakh from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured persons.