Two women were killed and several people injured after a passenger bus allegedly lost control and struck pedestrians, parked vehicles and a roadside tea stall in Bhubaneswar’s Nayapalli area early Sunday, according to a report by the Times of India. The bus driver reportedly fled the scene, while police began an investigation and a search for the vehicle and its driver.
The crash took place near CRP Square when the night coach bus allegedly ran into morning walkers. It then collided with a parked car and a goods-carrying auto-rickshaw, dragging the vehicles for nearly 100 metres before hitting a roadside tea stall. The impact also damaged an underground drinking water chamber.
The two women who died at the spot were identified as Geetanjali Rana, 24, from Bargarh district, and Juna Mandal, 41, from Nayagarh. The injured included Pradeep Jena, 45, and Sunita Meher, 26. Several injured people were taken to Capital Hospital for treatment, the report said.
The collision caused extensive damage to the parked car, whose rear section was completely mangled. The bus’s reported movement across multiple points near the road brought pedestrians, parked vehicles, a commercial establishment and a civic water facility into the same chain of impact.
Nayapalli police reached the location after the crash, dispersed the crowd and started examining the circumstances that led to the incident. Investigators are assessing the sequence of collisions and working to identify and locate the driver who allegedly left the scene immediately after the accident.
The incident has renewed concerns about speeding, reckless driving and pedestrian safety on Bhubaneswar’s roads. The early-morning timing placed pedestrians near a major urban junction, while the damage to the water chamber and roadside facilities showed how a high-speed crash can affect more than those directly involved in a collision.
The police investigation is expected to establish how the bus lost control, confirm the full number of injured people and determine the circumstances surrounding the driver’s alleged departure. Further action will depend on the findings of the ongoing inquiry.
