The gravel-laden lorry collided head-on with a Hyderabad-bound RTC bus, causing gravel to bury several passengers.
Both drivers died on the spot; rescue teams used earthmovers to pull out trapped passengers.
PM Modi and CM Revanth Reddy announced ex-gratia payments and ordered an inquiry into the fatal crash.
In Telangana's Ranga Reddy district, a tipper lorry carrying gravel slammed head-on with a public transport bus on Monday, killing 19 people—including 13 women and a girl child—and injuring 22 more, according to officials.
On Monday morning, approximately 50 kilometres from Hyderabad, near Chevella, the tipper collided with a Telangana Road Transport Corporation (RTC) truck, causing gravel to fall onto the bus.
According to a district official, the accident injured 22 persons.
The drivers of both cars perished in the collision, according to Cyberabad Police Commissioner Avinash Mohanty.
He stated that the cause of the accident would be determined during the investigation, noting that a head-on collision happens when one of the vehicles is on the wrong side.
Many passengers became stuck inside the bus as a result of the gravel falling on it, and authorities used earthmovers to provide relief.
The bus's occupants were removed, according to a police official.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote a post on X expressing his grievances over the accident's fatalities.
He announced a compensation of Rs two lakhs to the families of those who died, and Rs 50,000 each to the injured.
“I extend my deepest condolences to the affected individuals and their family members during this difficult time. I pray that the injured recover quickly," he said.
Telangana Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar, who visited the government hospital at Chevella, where the accident victims were admitted, said, "19 people were killed in the accident".
He claimed that early on Monday morning, the doomed bus carrying 72 passengers was travelling from Tandur in the Ranga Reddy district to Hyderabad.
Ministers and officials discussed the accident in a teleconference led by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy.
According to him, the government would help the families of the deceased arrange funerals and guarantee that the injured received cutting-edge medical care.
An investigation into the incident has been launched by the government.
In addition to Rs 2 lakh from TGSRTC, the Transport Minister stated that the state government would give the deceased's family members Rs 5 lakh apiece.
The injured would also receive Rs 2 lakh each from the government.
The Chief Minister gave officials instructions to begin relief efforts immediately after learning of the accident.
In addition to the insurance offered by the RTC, he instructed ministries and authorities to perform remedial actions, such as paying compensation to the surviving family members, according to an official statement.
One witness recalled the horrifying event, saying he was half-buried in gravel after being startled awake by a loud thud as he was sleeping in the bus.
“Several people were buried under the gravel. The tipper lorry came from the opposite direction. I was seated on the left side of the bus. We managed to climb out, but those who were sitting behind the driver couldn’t make it — some of them died. I was seated three rows behind the conductor,” he told mediapersons.
He added that six additional people followed him when he opened a window and fled.
Later, in order to free additional passengers, someone else broke the window panes.
According to a physician at the Chevella government hospital, the accident victims sustained leg, facial, and abdominal injuries in addition to fractures.
The injured were being treated with TT injections, IV hydration, and referrals to important state-run facilities in Hyderabad.
TV footage showed that people were trapped inside the bus because half of it was covered in gravel.
The authorities deployed heavy earth-moving equipment to clear the wreckage of the ill-fated bus.
Meanwhile, Chevella MLA Kale Yadaiah attributed the accident near Chevella to the narrowness of the road.
Chevella Inspector Sridhar sustained minor injuries during a rescue operation after an excavator ran over his leg, a police official said.
Telangana Governor Jishnu Dev Varma, Union Ministers G Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay Kumar, state BJP president N Ramchander Rao, BRS Working President K T Rama Rao and several other leaders expressed sadness over the loss of lives in the accident.
With PTI inputs.
