Indians among 14 killed in Nepal bus accident

Fourteen people, including Indians, were killed and over 30 injured when a bus fell off a mountainous road in southern Nepal early Tuesday, police said.

The bus, carrying 50 passengers from Bihar in India, swerved while trying to avoid hitting a mentally ill woman, survivors said.

The bus was headed towards Birgunj town near the Indian border from Kathmandu when it veered off the road into the Trishuli river almost 150 metres below.

Rajendra Prasad Yadav, a resident of Bihar's Motihari district, was identified as one of the victims. The exact number of Indian travellers could not be confirmed.

"We saw the driver swerve to avoid hitting a mentally ill woman who appeared in the middle of the road," said Ishwor Rai, a passenger who survived with minor injuries. Many of the victims were yet to be identified.

Two more passengers are still missing while 31 have been taken to a hospital. It was the worst accident this year.

The crash came on the first day of a transport strike called by ethnic protesters in southern Nepal.

The Madhesi Janadhikar Forum, an ethnic group demanding an autonomous Madhes state in the Terai region for people from the plains, has called a weeklong transport strike and blockade of customs offices along the Indo-Nepal border.

(IANS)

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