Chennai, July 13: Five people were killed and 42 others, including several children, were injured after a private omni bus collided head-on with a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus near Kottampatti in Madurai district during the early hours of Monday, police said.

The accident occurred on the four-lane national highway near Vandinagar, close to Kottampatti, when the private omni bus, which was travelling from Chennai to Marthandam, allegedly went out of control and crossed the central median into the opposite carriageway. It then rammed into an oncoming TNSTC bus with great force, causing extensive damage to both vehicles.

The impact of the collision was severe. The private bus veered off the highway after the crash and smashed into a roadside passenger shelter. Its front portion was completely crushed, trapping several passengers inside.

The TNSTC bus overturned due to the force of the impact, leaving passengers stranded and injured.

Police, fire and rescue personnel, along with local residents, rushed to the accident site and launched an intensive rescue operation.

Rescue teams used specialised equipment to extricate passengers trapped inside the mangled buses before shifting the injured to waiting ambulances.

Officials said five people — four men and one woman — died on the spot due to the severity of their injuries.

Their identities are yet to be officially confirmed.

Forty-two others, including children, sustained injuries of varying degrees and were admitted to the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai, where they are undergoing treatment. Hospital authorities said some of the injured remain in critical condition and are under close medical observation.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the driver of the private omni bus may have lost control of the vehicle moments before the collision. However, police said the exact cause of the accident would be established only after a detailed investigation, including an examination of the vehicles and statements from survivors and witnesses.

The accident triggered panic among motorists and residents in the area, while traffic on the busy highway was disrupted for several hours.

Police diverted vehicles through alternate routes as cranes were deployed to remove the damaged buses and clear the roadway.

The Kottampatti police have registered a case and launched a comprehensive investigation into the fatal accident. Authorities are also examining whether speeding, driver fatigue or mechanical failure contributed to the tragedy.

Ranchi, July 13: A horrifying case has come to light from Jharkhand’s Gumla district, where officials on Monday said a three-year-old girl was raped, following which a village panchayat attempted to stifle the case by imposing a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the accused instead of reporting the crime to police.

The incident took place in Palma village of the Gumla district.

According to the officials, the accused, identified as Sunil Lohra, was directed by the panchayat to pay Rs 20,000 — which was later to be used by those present to organise a feast involving meat and liquor — while the remaining Rs 80,000 was ordered to be paid within a week.

However, the police were tipped off, and subsequently the officials intervened before the matter could be buried. An FIR was registered, and the accused was arrested.

The police received a tip-off that the village panchayat was trying to settle the rape of the minor through a small fine to prevent the case from reaching the authorities, according to the investigators.

The officials said that due to pressure from villagers, the family of the victim did not report the matter to the police. However, after receiving information, the police reached the village and recorded the victim’s mother’s statement. Subsequently, an FIR was registered, and the accused was arrested.

The incident occurred around 4 p.m. on Saturday when Lohra visited the victim’s home. According to the officials, the victim’s mother was at home with her when the accused offered to look after the child so that she could finish her household chores.

According to the police, accused Lohra then took the child into a room and sexually assaulted her. When the mother heard the child crying, she rushed inside the room to find her bleeding.

However, the matter was taken to the panchayat instead of reporting the crime to the police.

The victim’s family alleged that some of the members of the panchayat took the child to a private doctor and then convened a public meeting on Sunday, when it was decided to impose a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the accused to settle the issue inside the village. Rs 20,000 was paid by the accused on the spot.

According to the officials, the feast, funded with the Rs 20,000 given by the accused, was underway when police arrived.

Further proceedings are underway, and details are awaited.

Hanoi, July 13: The mortal remains of the 15 Indian nationals who died in the tragic boat accident in Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Island will be transported to India from Ho Chi Minh City on Monday, said the Indian Embassy in Vietnam.

As many as 15 people, including 10 tourists from Tamil Nadu, were killed after a tourist boat carrying Indian visitors capsized off Phu Quoc Island on Saturday, turning what was intended to be a reward trip into a devastating accident.

The Vietnam Airlines flight VN979 is scheduled to leave Ho Chi Minh City at 6:00 p.m. local time and reach Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) at 9:35 p.m. (Indian time).

In a statement on X, the Indian Embassy said, “The mortal remains of the 15 Indian nationals who tragically lost their lives in the 11 July boat accident will be repatriated from Ho Chi Minh City to India today via Vietnam Airlines flight VN979. The flight is scheduled to depart Ho Chi Minh City at 1800 hrs local time and arrive at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) in Mumbai at 2135 hrs IST.”

“The respective state governments have been informed and have been requested to kindly coordinate with the affected families for the onward journey of the mortal remains to their final destinations. The Embassy in Hanoi and the Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City pray for the family members of the deceased. We are available for any assistance,” it added.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese police in southern An Giang province on Sunday detained and initiated criminal proceedings against a local man over alleged legal violations linked to the tourist boat that capsized.

The detainee was identified as 57-year-old captain Nguyen Hong Hai, a resident of Thuan Tien hamlet in Son Kien commune, An Giang province, who was temporarily residing in the Phu Quoc special zone.

According to preliminary reports, the boat was carrying around 32 Indian tourists, including 17 from Tamil Nadu, while the remaining passengers were from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Kerala.

The vessel reportedly overturned while cruising in waters south of Phu Quoc, a popular tourist destination in southern Vietnam.

Soon after the incident, rescue teams, local residents, and emergency personnel rushed to the scene and launched a large-scale rescue operation.

Several passengers were pulled from the water, while rescuers administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to those found unconscious in an attempt to save their lives.

Despite the swift emergency response, authorities confirmed that 15 people lost their lives in the accident, while the survivors were rescued and provided medical assistance.

The exact cause of the accident has not yet been officially disclosed.