SURAT: At least seven people were killed and around 40 injured after two Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) buses collided near Bardoli in Surat district on Tuesday. The accident occurred on National Highway 53 near Uva village.Surat district superintendent of police Rajesh Ghadhiya said one bus was travelling from Surat to Dhule, while the other was heading towards Surat from Chalisgaon in Maharashtra when the collision occurred. One of the buses caught fire following the impact, news agency PTI reported.“On the Bardoli–Vyara highway, the bus heading towards Maharashtra first hit a tractor. After losing balance, it jumped the divider and collided with the bus coming from the opposite direction, causing it to overturn and land in a low-lying area beside the road. The bus then caught fire,” Ghadhiya said.Following the incident, teams from the police department, fire brigade, and officials from Surat and neighbouring Tapi district rushed to the spot. Rescue and search operations were immediately launched.“We rescued several passengers trapped inside the bus and shifted the injured to Bardoli hospital. Around 40 passengers travelling in both buses were injured, while seven people lost their lives. All the deceased were travelling in the bus that caught fire,” Ghadhiya added.Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the families of the deceased and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured. “Rescue operations are underway, and authorities are providing all possible assistance at the accident site,” the Prime Minister Office (PMO) said in a post on X.PMO announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF). An amount of Rs 50,000 will be given to the injured.
