Death toll in Hathras road accident rises to 17

The death toll in the road accident in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras has risen to 17 as two more persons died, officials said.

The deceased included 12 people from a family.

Fifteen others were also injured in the accident and are being treated at hospitals in Aligarh and Agra.

The accident took place around 6 p.m. on Friday when a roadways bus collided with a van on the Agra-Aligarh National Highway.

Taking cognisance of the accident, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed district officials to reach the spot and take care of the relief measures.

The Chief Minister has also asked the officials to ensure proper treatment of the injured.

"The bus hit the van while trying to overtake it on the Agra-Aligarh national highway," Superintendent of Police (SP) Nipun Agarwal said.

The accident occurred near Kanwarpur village, about 10 km from the district headquarters.

The passengers were on their way to Agra from Hathras.

The Chief Minister has given instructions to provide a financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each to those seriously injured.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also mourned the deaths in the accident and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.

“The local administration is providing all possible help to the victims under the supervision of the state government,” he said on microblogging site X.

PM Modi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for those injured.

President Droupadi Murmu, condoling the loss of lives in the accident, prayed for a speedy recovery of the injured.

"The news of the deaths of several people in a road accident in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh is extremely sad. I express my deepest condolences to the bereaved families who lost their loved ones and pray for a speedy recovery of those injured," President Murmu said in a post on X.

Congress General Secretary, Priyanka Gandhi, also offered condolences to the bereaved families and appealed to the state government for properly assisting the affected families.

"The news of the death of a large number of people in the horrific road accident in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, is extremely sad. May God grant peace to the departed souls. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured. I appeal to the state government that the victims should get immediate treatment and the affected families should be given adequate compensation," Priyanka Gandhi wrote in a post on X.