Bhavnagar (Guj): At least 30 members of a wedding party were killed and as many injured when their truck fell from a bridge near a village in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district while trying to overtake a vehicle this morning, the state government said.
Among the injured, eight were reported to be in a critical condition, Minister of State for Home Pradipsinh Jadeja said. PM Modi expressed grief over the incident, while Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani ordered an inquiry and announced an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh to the kin of each deceased.
Bhavnagar’s in-charge Superintendent of Police IM Sayed said the truck was carrying around 60 people from Anida village, who were going to attend a wedding ceremony in Botad district.
The death toll in the accident has gone up to 30, Jadeja informed the state Assembly in Gandhinagar, adding that while 26 people died on the spot, four succumbed to their injuries at a hospital.
Around 60 people were travelling in the truck. They were going to attend a wedding in Botad when the vehicle fell from the bridge on the Bhavnagar-Rajkot highway while overtaking a vehicle, he said. “The truck fell on a concrete base under the bridge. Twenty-six people died on the spot while four others died during treatment,” he said.
