17 Killed as bus falls off bridge in central India

 At least 17 people were killed when a bus fell off a bridge into a dry river bed in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, police said Thursday.

    The bus driver lost control as he tried to avoid a head-on collision with a motorcycle and the vehicle fell off a small bridge Wednesday night in Balrampur district, local police officer Sadanand Kumar said.

    Fourteen people, including the two riders on the motorbike, died on the spot while three of the more than 50 injured later succumbed to their injuries, Kumar said. All the victims were men.

    The bus was travelling from a town in neighbouring Jharkhand state to Chhattisgarh capital Raipur. The accident took place near Daldhowa in Balrampur district, about 400 kilometres north-west of Raipur.

Source: QNA