Saturday, 23 November 2024
Saturday, 23 November 2024
The private bus was going from Pune to Mumbai when it plunged into the gorge near Shingroba temple located in the 'ghat' (mountain pass) section on the highway around 4.50 am, a senior police official said.
As per the information available so far, the deceased included at least five minors, including a six-year-old boy and a girl aged 15, while of the total number of injured, at least six are minors. The accident occurred in Khopoli police station limits.
"The bus was carrying 42 members of 'Baji Prabhu Vaadak Group' from Mumbai's Goregaon. They were returning to Goregaon after taking part in an event in Pimpri Chinchwad area in Pune district. The bus had left the venue around 1 am on Saturday," the police official said, adding that 13 of them died in the incident, which left 29 others injured.
In a tweet in Hindi, Union minister Shah said, "The road accident in Raigad, Maharashtra is very sad. Talked to Chief Minister @mieknathshinde and Deputy Chief Minister @Dev_Fadnavis in this regard. The local administration is engaged in relief work. I express my condolences to the families of the deceased and wish the injured a speedy recovery." CM Shinde visited the Mahatma Gandhi Mission (MGM) Hospital in Navi Mumbai to enquire about the health of the injured.
He also visited the accident site.
On learning about the incident, a team of local police, members of a trekking group and personnel of IRB company rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation, the police said.
The injured were admitted to three different hospitals - the MGM Hospital in Navi Mumbai, a government hospital in Khopoli and a private facility there, they said.
Most of the deceased and the injured were from Goregaon and Sion in Mumbai and Virar in neighbouring Palghar district, Raigad Superintendent of Police (SP) Somnath Gharge said. Most of the passengers were in their twenties, the police said.
The loss of lives in a bus accident in Maharashtra's Raigad is deeply distressing, President Droupadi Murmu said on Saturday, and offered condolences to the bereaved families.
"The loss of lives in a bus accident in Raigad, Maharashtra is deeply distressing. My condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured," the president tweeted.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde expressed grief over the accident and announced an ex-gratia of Rs five lakh to the kin of each deceased. Shinde said the condition of five of the injured is critical. The CM paid a visit to the accident site after visiting a hospital in Navi Mumbai, where most of the injured were admitted.
