One dead, 15 injured as bus carrying Bangladeshi pilgrims overturns near Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar, April 6: In a tragic incident early Sunday morning, a bus carrying Bangladeshi pilgrims overturned near Uttara Square on the Bhubaneswar-Puri National Highway, leaving one dead and at least 15 others injured. The deceased was identified as 60-year-old Nonibala Nath from Noakhali, Bangladesh.

Sources said the group of around 140 pilgrims, including 17 children, had arrived from Chittagong, Bangladesh, on March 17 for a religious tour of India. After visiting sacred sites like Ayodhya, Prayagraj, Dwarka, and Varanasi, they were heading to Puri to offer prayers at the Jagannath Temple when the accident occurred at around 2:20 AM.

Initial reports suggest the driver may have dozed off at the wheel, causing the bus to swerve off the highway and plunge into a roadside canal. Survivors said the helper had taken over driving duties as the main driver had been behind the wheel for two straight days. The helper allegedly lost control and hit the road divider before the bus overturned.

Locals, fellow pilgrims from a second bus, and police personnel rushed to the scene to rescue the injured. The victims were taken to Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar. Unfortunately, one critically injured woman succumbed to her injuries at the hospital.

In a further twist, one of the ambulances transporting the injured collided with the parapet of an overbridge near Shishu Bhavan Square. Three severely injured passengers were later referred to AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, for advanced medical care.