A bus-truck collision near Kohora in Assam’s Kaziranga has killed 24 people and injured several others, with officials examining possible overspeeding and overloading despite speed restrictions and monitoring cameras along the highway. The crash occurred at about 2.45pm near the Rangajan water supply project on a two-lane national highway.
The 26-seater mini-bus, registered in 2015, was travelling from Golaghat to Nagaon while carrying more than 40 passengers when it collided head-on with a container trailer travelling from Tezpur to Golaghat. The scale of damage to the bus and the resulting death toll have led officials to examine whether the vehicle was travelling faster than permitted.
Cabinet minister and local MLA Atul Bora, who reached the site and supervised rescue operations and medical arrangements, said the extent of the damage and the fatalities indicated that overspeeding could have been a factor. His remarks form part of the preliminary assessment and do not establish the final cause of the crash.
Speed restrictions apply across the more than 60-km stretch of highway. The maximum permitted speed is 20 kmph in identified animal corridors and 40 kmph on other sections. Speed-monitoring cameras have been installed at several locations, and transport department officials said the bus’s speed would have been captured by the system.
The crash site was not within one of the identified animal corridors, according to officials. It is located around 3 km from the animal corridor at the western end and about 3-4 km from the corridor at the eastern end. The site is also more than 2 km from Kohora Model Hospital, where injured passengers were initially admitted. There are nine identified animal corridors along the highway stretch.
Officials said the bus had valid documents and permits, but they suspected that it was carrying more passengers than its sanctioned seating capacity. A transport department official said a preliminary probe had also found a pending challan for overspeeding against the mini-bus. The challan was issued in March.
The suspected overloading is being examined as a possible violation of motor vehicle laws, particularly in light of the number of fatalities and injuries. The investigation will need to establish the bus’s actual speed, passenger count, the circumstances of the head-on collision and the role of the highway’s traffic restrictions and monitoring systems. Authorities have not yet announced a final cause or further enforcement action.
