Seven people were killed and 25 others injured after a bus and car collided on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway in the Usrahar area of UP's Etawah on Sunday.
Superintendent of Police Sanjay Kumar told reporters that the bus, with a Nagaland number plate, was travelling to Delhi from Rae Bareli. Around 12.45 am, the bus collided with the car as it came into its path after crossing the divider. As the bus driver sought to avoid the collision, the bus veered into a 20-foot roadside ditch and flipped over.
The police have been able to identify at least four of the deceased. Om Prakash Tiwari, 50, a native of Lakhimpur, was travelling in the bus. Car occupants Monu, 25, his mother Chanda Devi, and Pradyumn, 24, died on the spot.
According to the SP, the car driver likely fell asleep and entered the wrong lane.
The injured were rushed to hospital, and one of them was said to be in critical condition. A bus passenger, Ranjana, said the bus driver was constantly using the phone while driving even though he was asked multiple times not to.
"The government is making sure that best treatment is given to the admitted people. Rescue operations are also being carried out for the other people. We are making all possible efforts to make sure that all the other people reach their destinations," the SP was quoted as saying by ANI.
The bus had about 60 passengers.
The family in the car was returning to Talgram in Kannauj after paying a visit to Mehandipur Balaji in Rajasthan.