At least 12 dead, 38 injured as bus catches fire in Maharashtra's Nashik

Mumbai, Oct 08: At least 12 people have died after a bus caught fire in Nashik in Maharashtra in the early hours of Saturday, officials said.

The incident occurred around 5 am after the bus hit a container on Aurangabad road, according to a report in NDTV website."Most of those killed were passengers of the bus - a sleeper coach. The injured have been shifted to the hospital for treatment," said Amol Tambe, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Nashik.

The injured people have been taken to hospital, as per the police. "We are still trying to ascertain the exact number of deaths with the doctor's confirmation," Nashik Police told ANI.

Reportedly, 38 people were injured in the incident.

"The incident occurred near my house. Heavy vehicles ply here. After the incident, the bus caught fire and people were burnt to death. We saw it but could not do anything. Fire Dept & Police came later," an eyewitness of Nashik told ANI.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed his anguish over the loss of lives in the accident. "Anguished by the bus tragedy in Nashik. My thoughts are with those who have lost their loved ones in this mishap. May the injured recover at the earliest. The local administration is providing all possible assistance to those affected," a statement from his office said.

He further tweeted, "An ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each of the deceased due to the bus fire in Nashik. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000."

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the next of kin of those who lost their lives in to the bus accident.