Sidhi Accident: A bus fell off a bridge into a canal in Sidhi district.
Sidhi, Madhya Pradesh:
Thirty-two people have died in Madhya Pradesh’s Sidhi district, about 560 km from state capital Bhopal, after a bus fell off a bridge into a canal; many are feared drowned. Seven people have been rescued so far, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.
About 60 passengers were on board the bus when the driver lost control of the vehicle at around 7:30 AM.
A team of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), along with other officials concerned, began the rescue operations in the morning, the Chief Minister said. Doctors and ambulances were also rushed to the site.
“What has happened is extremely tragic. Rescue work is already on. Two ministers – Water Resources Minister Tulsiram Silawat and MOS for Panchyat Ramkhelawan Patel – are on their way to the site in a state plane. Families of those who have died will be given a compensation of Rs 5 lakh. The entire state is standing with those affected,” Shivraj Singh Chouhan said in a video message.
सीधी की दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण घटना को लेकर मैं लगातार प्रशासन से और राहतकार्य में लगे हुए लोगों से चर्चा कर रहा हूँ।
बहुत दुःखद है कि दुर्घटना में 18 लोगों की जान चली गई है। मन बहुत व्यथित है। बचावकार्य लगातार जारी है; कलेक्टर, कमिश्नर, आईजी, एसपी, एसडीआरएफ की टीम लगी हुई है। pic.twitter.com/TYPKV786Hf
— Shivraj Singh Chouhan (@ChouhanShivraj) February 16, 2021
The state government cancelled a key event in view of the accident, which was to be virtually attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
The Home Minister was scheduled to attend the event at 11 am for the beneficiaries of over one lakh houses constructed in Madhya Pradesh under the centre’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
“Brothers and sisters, today we were very excited to hold this event for 1 lakh beneficiaries. But we got the tragic news of the Sidhi bus accident. Rescue operations are on. Please pray for the safety of the passengers. We are postponing the event. We will hold it on another day,” Mr Chouhan said, adding that he is “continuously monitoring the situation”.
मेरे भाइयों-बहनों, आज हम उत्साह से एक लाख घरों में गृह प्रवेश का यह कार्यक्रम संपन्न करने वाले थे, लेकिन सीधी में यात्रियों से भरी बस नहर में गिरने की दुखद सूचना सुबह मिली। राहत और बचाव का कार्य जारी है। ऐसी परिस्थिति में मेरा मन भी वहीं लगा हुआ है। pic.twitter.com/nfeOWLKum5
— Shivraj Singh Chouhan (@ChouhanShivraj) February 16, 2021
While 32 bodies have been recovered so far, seven passengers have been rescued.
The private bus – going from Sidhi to Satna – fell into the Sharda canal.
Eye witnesses said that the bus drowned completely into the water, news agency PTI reported.
Later, the district administration stopped the release of water into the canal from the Banganga project, which sped up the rescue operations. Two cranes pulled out the bus from the canal.