23 pilgrims killed as bus falls into gorge in Telangana: Police

Hyderabad:Twenty-three pilgrims died and several others were injured when a state-run Road Transport Corporation (RTC) bus fell off a ghat road of a hill into a gorge in Telangana’s Jagitial district on Tuesday.
Unconfirmed reports said the toll could be around 30.
The pilgrims were on their way back from the famous Lord Hanuman temple atop Kondagattu hill and more than 50 passengers had boarded the bus.
Police suspect the accident took place due to failure of brakes while the driver was negotiating a turn on the ghat road down the hill at around 11.30 am.
More than 10 bodies have been recovered so far and the injured are being shifted to Jagitial government hospital, police said.
While local villagers quickly took up rescue works, Jagitial collector Sharath and superintendent of police Sindhu Sharma rushed to the spot along with police forces.
Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao expressed shock over the accident and conveyed his condolences. He directed officials to provide immediate medical assistance to the injured.