As many as fourteen people were killed and 24 sustained injuries in two separate road accidents occurred in Uttara Kannada and Raichur districts on Wednesday, police said.
The injured are out of danger, but are undergoing treatment in the hospital, they said.
Condoling the tragic incident, chief minister Siddaramaiah said the families would be paid compensation.
"It’s heartbreaking to hear the news that 14 people died in two separate accidents in Yellapur in Uttara Kannada district and Sindhanur in Raichur district. I pray for the souls of the deceased to rest in peace," Siddaramaiah said in a statement.
"The families of the deceased will be provided appropriate compensation by the government," he added.
In the Yellapura incident, a truck carrying 29 fruit sellers fell into a 50-metre-deep valley in the wee hours of Wednesday, police said.
The victims from Savanur in Haveri district, were heading towards the Yellapura fair to sell fruits. The accident occurred in a forested section, the Uttara Kannada Superintendent of Police M Narayana said.
"Around 5.30 am, the truck driver in a bid to give way to another vehicle went to the extreme left and fell into a 50-metre-deep valley," Narayana told PTI.
He added that there was no protection wall in the road there.
"Eight persons were killed on the spot and two got critical injuries. The injured have been shifted to the KIMS Hospital in Hubballi," the officer said.
Two critically wounded persons too died, failing to respond to treatment, sources said.
Nine victims have been identified as Fayaz Imam Saab Jamakhammadi (40), Wasim Mulla Mudageri (25), Ijaz Mushtaq Mulla (20), Sadiq Bhasha Paras (30), Ghulam Hussain Gudusaab Jawali (40), Imtiaz Ahmed Jafar Mulageri (45), Alfaz Jafar Mandaki (25), Jalani Babdul Ghaffar Zakati (20) and Aslam Babu Benne (24).
"We shifted the 15 injured persons to the hospital. They are out of danger," a police officer said.
A pall of gloom descended on Savanur town after the accident.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah too condoled the tragic death of 10 people in Yallapura.
"Deeply saddened by the loss of lives in the accident in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. Condolences to those who lost their loved ones. May the injured recover soon. The local administration is assisting those affected. An ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs 50,000," the Prime Minister Office said in a post on 'X'.
"Deeply saddened by the tragic road accident at Yallapura in Uttara Kannada that took away precious lives. My sincerest condolences to the families that lost their loved ones and my prayers for the speedy recovery of those injured," Shah said on 'X'.
In the Raichur incident, at least four persons including three students were killed and nine others injured when the vehicle they were travelling in overturned due to a tyre burst in the wee hours of Wednesday, police said.
The vehicle carrying students of Mantralaya Sanskrit Pathashala were on a pilgrimage to Hampi to offer prayers at Narahari Temple. Police said the accident occurred near Araginamara Camp in Sindhanur.
The deceased students have been identified as Aryavandan (18), Sucheendra (22) and Abhilash (20). Driver Shiva (24), too, lost his life in this accident. The injured have been admitted to a local hospital.
The Sindhanur police visited the spot, shifted the bodies to the mortuary and the injured to the hospital. Sindhanur Traffic Police Station registered a case.
Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.
