MP Sidhi Bus Accident: 3-month-old Among 47 Dead, 7 Rescued; Rescue Op Called Off For the Day

MP Sidhi Bus Accident: At least 47 people, including 24 men, 21 women and two children, have died after a passenger bus fell into a canal in Madhya Pradesh’s  Sidhi early today. The multi-agency rescue operation has been called off for the day and will resume tomorrow, said Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Seven people have been rescued so far, he said.

Meanwhile, Sidhi Collector Ravindra Chaudhary has told media that rescue operation had concluded on Tuesday and would resume on Wednesday morning. He said exact number of people trapped in the canal could not be guessed, but estimated it could be four to five people.

The bus carrying 54 people fell into a canal in Sidhi as it was heading to Satna from Sidhi district and the incident happened at Rampur Naikin area at around 7.30am. Police said the bus was to move from Chhuiya Valley area but the driver, who was later saved, took a detour to avoid a traffic jam.

However, he lost control over the vehicle which then plunged into the canal.

An SDRF team was rushed to the spot and the bus was taken out of the canal with the help of a crane. As a precautionary measure, water from nearby Bansagar dam was stopped.

Police said the bus was overcrowded as the 32-seater vehicle had 54 passengers. As many as seven passengers were saved by the rescuers.

PM Modi expressed grief over the “horrific” accident and approved an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for next of kin of those who lost their lives.

Modi said, “The bus accident in MP’s Sidhi is horrific. Condolences to the bereaved families. The local administration is actively involved in rescue and relief work.”

Chouhan has summoned transport minister Govind Singh Rajput for discussing the road mishap. The CM also cancelled his Tuesday events in the wake of the tragedy.

“What has happened is extremely tragic. Rescue work is already on. Two ministers are on their way to the site. Families of those who have died will be given compensation of ₹ 5 lakh. The entire state is standing with those affected,” Chouhan said in a video message.

The chief minister said he ordered to stop the water outflow from the Bansagar dam so that water level in the canal could go down and help in the rescue operation. Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath also expressed grief over the bus tragedy.

Eyewitnesses said the bus sank completely into the canal water and was not visible in the morning hours. Later, the district administration stopped the release of water into the canal from the Bansagar project, which brought the water level down, they said.

Meanwhile, in view of the accident, the CM cancelled a house-warming ceremony to be attended virtually by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Shah was scheduled to take part in the programme, scheduled to be held at 11 AM in Bhopal, for the beneficiaries of over one lakh houses constructed in Madhya Pradesh under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).

In another incident, five women were killed and 30 injured when a mini-cargo vehicle carrying them went out of control in Tuticorin and plunged into a roadside canal on Tuesday, police said. The women were on their way to work when the driver lost control of the vehicle and it plunged into a small canal at Maniyachi.

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