11 dead as cooking gas cylinder explodes in bus

Explosion of a cooking gas cylinder in a private bus here has claimed 11 lives, including those of three children, officials said today.
"A total of 11 people, including three children and a woman, have succumbed to their burn injuries caused by an explosion of cooking gas cylinder in a private bus last evening," District Magistrate Bulandshahr Nidhi Kesarwani said.
Over 100 passengers were injured when a cooking gas cylinder caught fire and exploded. Police said, one of the passengers was carrying the 5 kg cooking gas cylinder.
The bus was going from Shikarpur to Jahangirabad when the incident occurred near Kutubpur village in Shikarpur police station area of the district, 400 km from state capital Lucknow.

While, some of the injured were being treated at government hospitals in the district, around 55 were sent to various government and private hospitals in New Delhi and Noida, the official said.
Meanwhile, the state government has announced an ex-gratia for next of kin and those sustained burn injuries.

Kesarwani said, the state government has announced Rs two lakh each for next of kin, Rs one lakh each for those sustained severe burn injuries and Rs 50,000 each to those received minor burn injuries.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Akhilesh Meena today said police was probing about the possibility of presence of more than one cylinder in the bus, taking into the extent of damage caused after the explosion.

According to the conductor of the ill-fated bus, Satish, one passenger forcefully boarded the bus at Shikarpur town here with a 5-kg cooking gas cylinder.