The death toll from Friday’s container truck and bus collision in India’s northeastern state of Assam has risen to 26, with 20 people injured, Hiru News reported late on Saturday. Police initially put the toll at 24 dead and 11 injured.
Update, 14 November: toll rises to 26
Hiru News reported that 26 people were killed and 20 injured in the head-on collision between the bus and the container truck near Kaziranga National Park. Authorities warn the toll may rise further.
The original account, below, is as first reported on 13 November.
At least 24 people were killed and 11 injured when a container truck collided with a bus in India’s northeastern state of Assam on Friday, police said.
The crash happened on a highway in Golaghat district, near Kaziranga National Park — a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its one-horned rhinos — about 225km (140 miles) east of the state capital, Dispur, Al Jazeera reported.
Several children and the bus driver were among the dead, officials said.
‘The scale of this loss has shaken all of us’
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on X that he was “deeply distressed by the tragic accident”.
“The scale of this loss has shaken all of us, and my heart goes out to every family that has lost a loved one. No words can ease their pain, but I want them to know that they are not alone. All of Assam stands with them in this hour of grief,” he said.
Sarma added that local authorities were at the site and “personally overseeing the relief arrangements … to make sure the injured receive the best possible medical care without delay”.
Swapnaneel Deka, superintendent of police for Golaghat district, told Reuters that “it is likely the death toll will increase”. He said the bus was travelling to a neighbouring district with about 30 people on board.
India has one of the highest rates of road deaths in the world, with crashes occurring regularly in part because of poorly maintained roads and vehicles.
A figure that does not reconcile
The revised toll widens a gap already present in the first reports. The updated 26 dead and 20 injured total 46 casualties, against the “about 30 people” the district police chief gave as the number aboard the bus; the original 24 and 11 totalled 35. No filing says whether the additional casualties were in the truck, in another vehicle or on the road, or whether the bus was carrying more people than first stated. Neither set of figures is presented as final.
Sourcing note
The original account comes from Al Jazeera, reporting with AP and Reuters; the Daily Mirror carried the same Al Jazeera report in its international section rather than adding independent reporting. The revised toll comes from Hiru News alone — Al Jazeera had not updated its 13 November report at the time of writing, and the figures above are reproduced as Hiru gives them.
