DHAKA: At least 27 people were killed after a bus collided with a truck and plunged into a gorge in India’s western state of Maharashtra Thursday, police said.

The driver lost control of the bus after the collision in Thane district, around 150 kilometres north of state capital Mumbai.

‘The victims include 19 women and two children,’ area police chief Anil Kumbhare said by phone. The driver was among the dead.

The bus fell 350-400 feet into the gorge, the officer said, reports The Voice of Russia.

Ten more people were injured, seven of whom were in a critical condition, he added. There were 37 people on board the bus.

India has one of the highest number of traffic fatalities in the world. Government figures say about 120,000 people are killed in road accidents each year.

BDST: 1713 HRS, JAN 02, 2014
Edited by Robab Rosan, Current Affairs Editor