Jaipur, July 1 (IANS) At least eight people were killed and 21 others injured after a sleeper bus collided with a trailer and caught fire on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Rajasthan’s Dausa district in the early hours of Wednesday. Six of the victims were reportedly burnt alive, while two died of head injuries sustained in the crash.

The accident occurred around 2:30 a.m. near Zero Point in the Tanawad area under Kolwa police station limits.

According to Dausa Superintendent of Police Piyush Dixit, the bus was travelling from Rishikesh to Indore when it rammed into a trailer moving ahead at high speed.

The impact triggered a massive fire that engulfed both vehicles within minutes. Police said the blaze spread rapidly through the sleeper coach, trapping several passengers inside and making rescue operations extremely difficult.

Twenty-one injured passengers, including children, were shifted to Dausa District Hospital, where many are undergoing treatment for burn injuries and trauma. Preliminary investigations suggest the bus driver may have dozed off before the collision, although the exact cause of the accident and the subsequent fire remains under investigation.

Amid the investigation, local residents alleged that the bus’s luggage compartment contained cartons of cigarettes, which may have intensified the fire.

A local villager who participated in the rescue efforts claimed that several boxes of cigarette packets were found in the storage compartment while locals were attempting to douse the flames.

Police have not officially confirmed the presence of cigarette cartons and said the claim is being examined as part of the ongoing investigation.

Survivors and local residents alleged that emergency response teams reached the accident site late.

According to passengers, nearby villagers began rescuing those trapped inside the burning bus before ambulances and fire brigade personnel arrived.

Locals also claimed that the fire brigade arrived after a delay, by which time the bus had been engulfed in flames, and several passengers had already succumbed to the fire.

Officials said both the sleeper bus and the trailer were completely destroyed in the blaze. Following the fire, traffic on both sides of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway remained suspended for nearly an hour before the charred vehicles were removed and traffic restored.

Authorities have launched a detailed investigation into the circumstances leading to the collision, the cause of the fire, and allegations regarding the cargo carried in the bus.

Meanwhile, former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has expressed condolences to the bereaved families. “The news of the tragic road accident on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Dausa district, which claimed several lives, is deeply saddening. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased. May God grant them strength during this difficult time and bestow peace upon the departed souls. I wish the injured a speedy recovery,” he said

–IANS

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