South Asia News

Nine killed as school bus collides with oil tanker in India

Sep 13, 2010, 14:09 GMT

New Delhi - At least nine people including six children were killed in a collision between a school bus and an oil tanker in India's northern state of Haryana on Monday, a news report said.

A teacher and the driver of the school bus were among the victims of the accident that occurred in Bhiwani district, some 120 kilometres west of national capital New Delhi, the NDTV network reported.

'There were a total of 11 people on the school bus. Five children died on the scene,' district police chief Ashwani, who uses only one name, told the news channel.

'The death-toll could go up as four children, whose condition has been described as serious, have been moved to hospital in the nearby Rohtak district,' he added.

Police said preliminary investigations showed that the accident may have been caused by the bus driver's negligence.

'The initial probe shows that the school bus was trying to overtake a vehicle which led to the accident,' Ashwani said.

About 120,000 people are killed annually in road accidents in India, according to government data.