Nashik: With six more people succumbing to their injuries, the death toll in the bus accident here mounted to 26 on Wednesday.
According to Deola PI H D Deshmukh, six more passengers who were battling for life, died on Wednesday. The collision had occurred between a Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus and an auto rickshaw at Meshi village on Malegaon-Deola road in Deola taluka of the district. After the collision both the vehicles fell into a well.
Thirty-two injured have been admitted in Deola, Umrane rural hospital and Malegaon hospital.
Of the deceased, eight belonged to one family from Malegaon and were travelling in the ill-fated auto rickshaw.
All the deceased have been identified and the process to hand over their mortal remains to their relatives was on till reports last came in. Both the vehicles have been removed from the accident spot and the rescue operation at the spot has been completed.
In this accident, a 30-year-old woman Kalpana and her twin daughters Riddhi-Siddhi lost their lives. Similarly, Shakeel Mansuri’s wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law, sister-in-law, her husband, their son and maternal and paternal uncles of Mansuri’s wife also lost their life. They were travelling in the ill-fated auto rickshaw Interestingly, conductor of the ill-fated bus Kamal Laxman Raut (resident of Dalwat (Tatane), taluka Kalwan) survived the accident.
Meanwhile,
Compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the kin of dead
Meanwhile, state Transport Minister Anil Parab, District Guardian Minister Chhagan Bhujbal and state Agriculture Minister Dada Bhuse visited general hospital at Malegaon on Wednesday and inquired the injured.
While interacting with media persons, Transport Minister and MSRTC chairman Parab has announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the kin of those killed in the accident as a special measure and stated that MSRTC will bear the treatment cost of those injured. Besides this, the benefit of Gopinath Munde farmer accident insurance scheme will be given to those killed who will become eligible, he informed.