At least 12 persons were killed and 27 others injured after the bus they were travelling in fell into a gorge on the old Mumbai-Pune highway in Raigad district of Maharashtra early on Saturday, police said.

The private bus carrying members of a traditional music troupe was going from Pune to Mumbai when it fell into the gorge near Shingroba temple on the highway around 4.50 am, a senior police official said.

The accident occurred under the Khopoli police station limits.

"The bus was carrying 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," he said, adding that at least 12 persons were killed and 27 others injured in the accident.

The deceased and the injured were from Sion and Goregaon in Mumbai and Virar in neighbouring Palghar district, Raigad Superintendent of Police (SP) Somnath Gharge said.

The injured were admitted to the Khopoli Rural Hospital, he added.

Additional SP Atul Zende said the deceased and the injured belonged to the age group of 18 to 25.

A team of local police and a trekker's group are currently engaged in the rescue operation, police said.

Khopoli town is located around 70 km from Mumbai.

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