Andhra govt announces ex-gratia for kin of Kurnool bus fire victims

Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh) [India], October 24 (ANI): The Andhra Pradesh government on Friday announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs two lakh each to the injured of the Kurnool bus fire incident in which as many as 19 people were killed.
Andhra Pradesh Transport Minister Mandipalli Ramprasad Reddy told ANI, "19 people lost their lives in this incident. 27 people were rescued. We have announced Rs 5 lakhs each to the kin of the deceased and Rs 2 lakhs each to the injured. Our 16 teams are mobilised over this incident."
Andhra Pradesh Home Minister Anitha informed on Friday that 17 adults and two minors were charred to death after a passenger bus travelling from Hyderabad to Bengaluru collided with a motorbike and caught fire.
Anitha said it was an "unfortunate" incident. The bus was travelling from Hyderabad to Bengaluru around 3 am when the incident took place.
"The bus collided with a motorbike, dragged it, and caught fire, resulting in the loss of around 19 lives, including two children," Anitha said.
She added that upon receiving information, "our police department reached the spot and informed the Chief Minister and local leaders".
"A total of 39 passengers were travelling in the bus", she said, adding that the bus driver escaped and helped passengers exit by breaking the glass. "17 adults and two minors lost their lives".
"We have registered a case, and the driver is in our custody. We're investigating the matter. The motorbiker, Shiva Kumar, a native of Kurnool, lost his life. The dead bodies were severely damaged in the flames, making identification difficult," Anitha said.
The State Home Minister added that, "We've formed special teams to identify the bodies and are collecting DNA samples from deceased families. We have deployed forensic teams to investigate the matter further."
Earlier today, the passenger Jayant Kushwaha, who was travelling from Hyderabad in a private bus that caught fire, narrated the horrific ordeal, saying that he remained in disbelief after witnessing fire onboard as soon as he woke up.
Jayant woke up around 2:30 AM only to find himself and others trapped in a fire on board since the doors remained locked. He, along with two or three other passengers, attempted to break emergency windows to escape the bus.
"Around 2:30-2:40 AM, the bus stopped, and I woke up and I saw that the bus caught fire. I couldn't believe that it was fire. I realised moments after that it was fire. Only two three people were awake. We yelled fire and woke everybody up. The doors were locked. We couldn't locate the drivers. We broke the emergency window as the main door was locked. We jumped out of the window. Many people jumped out of the bus by breaking the windows," Jayant told ANI. (ANI)