Eight school children killed, 11 injured in road accident in India

At least eight school children were killed and 11 others injured Tuesday after a speeding bus rammed into a stationary van in southwestern state of Karnataka in India, officials said.

The ill-fated van was hit at Trasi village of Udupi district, about 403 km northwest of Bengaluru, the capital city of Karnataka.

"This morning at 8:15 (local time), a bus rammed into a van carrying school children, killing eight on spot and injuring 11 others including driver and a teacher," an official posted in the district said. "The van had stopped at an intersection few meters from the school, when the speeding bus hit it from behind."

Reports said 17 children of varying ages below 13 were inside the van, besides a teacher and the driver.

"Of the injured children, one is critical," the official said. "However the condition of remaining seven children, driver and teacher is stated to be stable."

The van was taking children to a privately-run Don Bosco School in Kundapur.

Witnesses said the van was crushed in the accident. However, the passengers inside the bus were left unhurt.

Police officials have arrested the driver of the bus and initiated investigations to ascertain the cause of accident.

Deadly road accidents are common in India often caused due to overloading, bad condition of roads and reckless driving.

Last year 146,133 people were killed and 500,279 others injured in 501,423 road accidents across India, a latest report released by India's ministry of road transport said.

Global Road Safety Report 2015 released by WHO last year however said India accounts for more than 200,000 deaths annually due to road accidents. Endit