Death toll in India’s Uttar Pradesh road accident rises to 17

NEW DELHI, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) — The death toll in road accident in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday has risen to 17, police said.
Sixteen people injured in the accident are undergoing treatment in hospitals.
The accident took place Friday after a state government-run passenger bus collided with a van near Hathras, about 384 km northwest of Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh.
“Today two more children succumbed and with this, the death toll has risen to 17,” a senior police official said. “Yesterday 15 people, including four women, travelling in the van were killed after a bus hit it while trying to overtake it. Of the 16 injured, 11 are hospitalized in Hathras and five in Aligarh.”
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed district officials to extend help to the victims. He also gave instructions to provide the family of each deceased person with 2,381 U.S. dollars in financial assistance and 595 dollars to each injured in the accident.
Deadly road accidents are common in India due to overloading, bad road conditions and reckless driving.
Around 150,000 people are killed every year in about half a million road accidents across India, officials said. ■