Child killed, nearly 30 injured in head-on bus and truck collision on NH-18 in Purulia

A six-year-old girl was killed and nearly 25 to 30 passengers were injured after a passenger bus collided head-on with a truck on National Highway 18 near Kourang village close to Katadi in Purulia district on Friday afternoon. The injured passengers were rescued and taken to Purulia Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared the child dead. Police identified the deceased as Dipanwita Das, a resident of the Tamna police station area in Purulia district.

According to police sources, the accident took place when the passenger bus travelling through the area collided with a truck approaching from the opposite direction. Both vehicles were reportedly moving at high speed at the time of the crash. The impact severely damaged the front portions of both the bus and the truck, trapping several passengers inside the bus and triggering panic at the accident site.

Local residents immediately rushed to the spot and began rescue operations before police personnel from the Katadi outpost arrived. With joint efforts from residents and police teams, injured passengers, including men, women and children, were pulled out from inside the damaged and bloodstained bus. Several passengers sustained serious injuries during the collision.

Hospital authorities stated that the condition of a number of injured passengers remains critical. Some of the injured were admitted to Purulia Medical College and Hospital for treatment after receiving initial assistance. Police have started an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the accident and are examining how the head-on collision occurred on the national highway.