At least 12 people were killed and six others injured on Saturday after a passenger vehicle carrying them rammed into a stationary goods truck in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, police said.
The accident took place during the morning on a highway at Lakhimpur Kheri district, about 129 km north of Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, reports BSS.
“The overloaded van carrying 18 people, including a driver and a helper, rammed into the truck parked near a roadside eatery in Uchaulia early this morning. The van driver failed to spot the truck as he had dozed off, leading to the accident,” a police official said.
While nine people died on the spot, three of those injured succumbed to their injuries in the hospital later in the day, he added.
The van was going to Sitapur from Shahjahanpur when it met with the accident.
“Anyway, a probe has been ordered into the incident,” the official said, adding that steps would soon be taken to prevent overloading of vehicles.
On Thursday, 13 children were killed and several others injured after a train hit a school bus at an unmanned railroad crossing in Kushinagar district of the state.
Deadly road accidents are common in India, which are often caused due to overloading, bad condition of roads and reckless driving. According to an official report, on average, 400 deaths take place every day in India due to road accidents.
