Nine killed in tempo-truck crash near Mysore

Nine people, among them three children and three women, were killed early Wednesday in a road accident near Mysore, a police official said.

The people were travelling in a tempo (mini bus), which collided with a truck on the state highway near Mysore, about 200 km from here.

"The accident occurred around 6 a.m. on the outskirts of Kamlapur village near Periyapatna (about 50 km from Mysore) when the two vehicles collided due to negligence and over-speed," Mysore District Superintendent of police Abhinav Khare told IANS from the accident spot.

Six people, who were also on board in the ill-fated tempo, suffered injuries and were rushed to state-run hospitals at Hunsur and Mysore for emergency treatment.

"The tempo driver died on the spot, while the truck driver survived. We have arrested him for investigation and registered an accident case against him," Khare said.

The truck was hired by the state-run Bharat Petroleum for transporting gas cylinders from Mangalore to other parts of the state and to Tamil Nadu for across-the-border distribution.

Khare added that the victims were returning to Mangalore from Tamil Nadu after a vacation.