Bihar bus accident: 27 feared charred to death; Modi, Nitish condole loss

At least 27 people were feared dead when a bus, carrying at least 32 passengers, fell into a roadside pit and caught fire in Bihar's East Champaran district on Thursday, Disaster Management Department minister Dinesh Chandra Yadav said, according to media reports. The bus was on its way to Delhi from Muzaffarpur.
The incident took place on NH-28 near Belwa village under Kotwa police station area, about 30 kilometres from Motihari, the district headquarters.

The private air-conditioned bus had begun its journey at Muzaffarpur, about 85 km from Motihari.

The fire incinerated the bus and nobody could be retrieved so far.

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police (Sadar), Murli Manohar Manjhi and Officer on Special Duty to District Magistrate Ajeet Kumar, "six to eight" persons had managed to come out of the bus, which was engulfed in flames, by smashing the window panes.

National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force teams have been rushed to the spot and hospitals in Motihari & Muzaffarpur districts put on alert. The injured are being treated for injuries at a hospital, the officials, who were supervising rescue work at the spot, said.