Overview

• Eleven pilgrims from Bihar’s East Champaran district died and 37 others, including six children, were injured when their bus struck a stationary truck on NH19 near Purba Bardhaman early on August 15.
• Local residents and highway police rescued survivors and moved the injured to Burdwan Medical College, with one critically wounded passenger transferred to SSKM Hospital in Kolkata.
• Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced ex-gratia payments of ₹2 lakh for each deceased family and ₹50,000 for the injured, directing officials to coordinate with West Bengal authorities for treatment and body repatriation.
• West Bengal police suspect the bus driver may have dozed off and are searching for the truck’s driver as post-mortems and a formal investigation into the parked vehicle’s circumstances continue.
• Authorities warn that the collision underscores a broader pattern of fatal highway crashes in India linked to driver fatigue, vehicle breakdowns on busy roads and gaps in safety enforcement.