Twenty-seven passengers, including 19 women, were killed and 10 injured when a state transport bus plunged into a 300-foot-deep gorge after colliding with a truck at Tokawade in the famous hill resort Malshej Ghats on Thursday morning.

   Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) spokesperson Mukund Dhus said that the accident occurred around 9:30 am, when the Thane-Ahmednagar bus (MH 12 GF 6646) collided with a wooden log-laden truck.

The bus driver, while swerving on one of the blind curves in the hilly and heavily forested Malshej Ghats, came across a truck coming from the opposite direction. After the collision, the vehicle went to the jagged edge of the snaky road overlooking a deep gorge.

Dhus said: “Rescue operations were launched immediately by the local people, the police and the Thane Collector’s office. The injured people were rushed to four different hospitals.
“We have announced Rs 3 lakh each as compensation to the next of the kin of the deceased, and the MSRTC will also bear the medical expenses for those injured. However, the identification of the deceased has still not been done.”

Superintendent of Police, Thane (Rural) Sangram Nishandar said the bus had  37 passengers  when the accident occurred. He said the 10 injured were reportedly in a critical condition.