Eighteen Die in Deoghar Bus Crash

• Eighteen Kanwariyas died and ten were injured in a fatal bus-truck collision in Deoghar, Jharkhand, on Tuesday.
• The accident occurred during the ongoing Shravani Mela, a major pilgrimage to Baba Baidyanath Dham temple.
• Investigations are underway to determine the cause of the head-on crash, which involved a bus carrying devotees and a truck with gas cylinders.

GG News Bureau
Deoghar, 29th July: Eighteen Kanwariyas lost their lives and ten others were injured in a devastating road accident that occurred near Jamuniya village in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district on Tuesday. The tragic incident took place amidst the ongoing Shravani Mela, a significant pilgrimage period when thousands of devotees travel to offer sacred water at the revered Baba Baidyanath Dham temple.

Deoghar MP Nishikant Dubey confirmed the tragedy in a post on X, stating, “In my Lok Sabha constituency of Deoghar, during the Kanwar Yatra in the month of Shravan, 18 devotees lost their lives due to a bus and truck accident. May Baba Baidyanath Ji grant strength to their families to bear this grief.” The accident site, located in Mohanpur block of Deoghar, lies along the banks of the north-flowing Jamuniya River, near a renowned Shiva-Parvati temple.

The collision happened when a bus carrying approximately 35 devotees, who were en route to Deoghar to offer ‘jal’ (holy water) at Baba Baidyanath Dham, was struck head-on by a truck transporting gas cylinders. Eyewitnesses described a horrifying scene, with the bus reportedly torn apart by the intense impact and screams echoing in the aftermath.

Several devotees were trapped inside the mangled remains of the vehicle, prompting an immediate response from the police, ambulance services, and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). These teams worked collaboratively to extract the injured and retrieve the bodies from the wreckage.

The injured were swiftly transported to nearby primary health centres and Deoghar Sadar Hospital, where authorities noted that the condition of some victims was critical. The identities of the deceased are currently being verified, and their bodies have been sent for post-mortem examinations. Top district officials, including members of the police and civil administration, arrived at the accident site and subsequently visited the hospitals to oversee the ongoing rescue and medical efforts. A crane was deployed at the scene to manage the wreckage, and preliminary investigations have commenced, focusing on determining whether driver negligence contributed to the tragic accident.