Twenty-six people were killed and 53 others injured in two separate road accidents on Friday in India's east state of West Bengal, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.
Twenty-two pilgrims, including 17 women, were killed and 16 others injured Friday morning when a matador van collided head on with a truck carrying stone chips on a bridge in Howrah district, which is near Calcutta, 1,460 kilometers southeast of here,
The pilgrims were going to attend a religious festival at a temple in Domjur of the district, the PTI said, quoting Howrah district magistrate Vivek Kumar.
The accident took place at about 7:30 AM local time when the van rammed into the truck from the opposite direction, killing 14 people on the spot.
Four of the injured died on the way to the Howrah general hospital, the PTI added.
Condition of the remaining 16 injured continued to be critical, Kumar said.
In another mishap in Purulia district of the state, the PTI reported, four people were killed and 37 others injured when a bus overturned near a bridge, also on Friday morning.
(China Daily April 13, 2002)
