At least 41 pilgrims killed in India road accident

At least 41 Hindu devotees were killed Monday when their vehicle fell into a roadside pond in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, officials said. The tractor pulling a trailer was carrying about 60 people from a village to a local temple in the Ballia district, located more than 400 kilometres south-east of the state capital, Lucknow. “Forty-one people died in the accident, and about 15 injured are being moved to local hospitals,” police officer RK Singh said by telephone. “We are yet to ascertain the exact cause behind the accident and have launched investigations,” he said. “The victims include women and children.” People in India’s rural areas often use tractor-trailers to commute between villages. More than 100,000 people have died each year since 2007 in road accidents in India, according to government data.