Six killed, 34 injured as bus falls into pit in MP

At least six persons were killed and 34 others injured when a bus fell into a gorge near a village here early this morning, a police official said.
The bus, which belonged to a private operator, was on its way to Dindori from Jabalpur when it fell into the ditch near ghat section in Jogitikaria village at around 4 AM, Kotwali police station In-charge Shivlal Markam said.
Those killed in the mishap were identified as Choti Sahu, 23, Sanjeev Burman, 45, Surjeet Mudia, 30, Awdhesh 30, Rahul, 26 besides one other, who is yet to be identified, he said.
"As many as 34 people were injured and eight of them were referred to a hospital in Jabalpur, while the remaining ones were admitted in Dindori district hospital," Markam said.

The bus driver fled the spot after the accident.
District Collector Amit Tomar, Superintendent of Police Simala Prasad and other officials visited the accident site.

A probe is underway into the accident.
Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh government announced an ex-gratia of Rs four lakh each for the families of those killed in the accident and said it would bear the medical expenses of the injured.
"A financial aid of Rs four lakh each would be provided to the family members of those killed in the accident," state minister Om Prakash Dhurve, who visited the hospital at Jabalpur to enquire about the condition of the injured, told reporters.

"The government would bear the expenses of treatment of those injured, besides providing financial help of Rs 10,000 to each of them," he said.