At least 37 people, including 16 women, died after the bus they were travelling in fell off a bridge into a canal near Patna village in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district on Tuesday morning, a senior official said, adding that search operations are still going on.

After fishing out 18 bodies initially, rescuers have retrieved 19 more bodies until now, said Rewa Divisional Commissioner Rajesh Jain.

"A total of 37 bodies, including 16 women, 20 men and a child, have been fished out of the Bansagar canal until now," he said, adding that a magisterial probe has been ordered.

Prima facie, 44 passengers were travelling on the bus at the time of the accident, which occurred around 8:30 AM.

"Seven persons managed to swim to the banks of the canal after the incident and 37 bodies have been recovered. The 44 passengers have been identified so far," Jain added.

Earlier in the morning, Inspector General (Rewa zone) Joga had confirmed the recovery of 18 bodies from the accident site.

The bus landed into the canal near Patna village, around 80 kms away from the Sidhi district headquarter, around 8:30 AM.