Watch: 45 Telangana pilgrims charred to death in Saudi bus accident

At least 45 Indian Umrah pilgrims, most of them from Telangana, died in a horrific bus–tanker collision near Madinah early Monday. The bus burst into flames, leaving bodies charred. One person survived. Authorities are coordinating relief and DNA-based identification

Hyderabad: At least 45 Indian Umrah pilgrims, most of them from Telangana, were charred to death in a ghastly bus accident near Saudi Arabia’s holy city of Madinah in the wee hours of Monday. The bus, carrying around 45 pilgrims, reportedly collided with an oil tanker at around 1.30 am IST, while it was on its way from Makkah to Madinah.

The bodies were said to be burnt beyond recognition with the bus bursting into flames immediately after the collision, with authorities now planning to conduct DNA tests to identify the victims.

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The Indian mission in Jeddah, which rushed officials to the accident site to assess the situation, is yet to release a statement on the exact number of casualties, while Hyderabad City Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar put the toll at 45, saying a total of 54 persons from the city had left for the pilgrimage on November 9. They were scheduled to return on November 23.

Of the 54, four people travelled separately by car to Madinah on Sunday, while another four stayed back in Makkah. According to Sajjanar, 46 people were travelling in the ill-fated bus, which collided with the oil tanker about 25 km from Madinah. Only one person survived the accident and was currently undergoing treatment at a hospital. Among the dead, 18 were from one family.

The Telangana Haj Committee was quoted in reports saying that 10 children were among the victims. Another police official said out of the 46 who were in the bus, 43 were from Hyderabad limits, two from Cyberabad while one person had an address in Hubballi of Karnataka.

The Indian mission in Jeddah set up a 24×7 control room to coordinate assistance, while the State government opened control rooms in Hyderabad and at Telangana Bhavan in New Delhi to pass on information to relatives of the victims.

The State government is sending a team led by Minority Welfare Minister Mohammed Azharuddin to Saudi, while Bharat Rashtra Samithi working president KT Rama Rao announced that a BRS delegation would also reach the spot to help relatives of the victims and coordinate relief efforts. The government also decided to conduct the funeral of the deceased as per religious traditions in Saudi Arabia and to provide an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of those who died. Two members from each family of the victims would be taken to Saudi Arabia, it said.

In posts on social media, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President CP Radhakrishnan and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar conveyed condolences to families of the deceased. “Deeply saddened by the accident in Medinah involving Indian nationals. My thoughts are with the families who have lost their loved ones. I pray for the swift recovery of all those injured,” Modi said, adding that the Indian Embassy in Riyadh and Consulate in Jeddah were providing all possible assistance. “Our officials are also in close contact with Saudi Arabian authorities,” he said.

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, Leader of Opposition and BRS president K Chandrashekhar Rao, BRS working president KT Rama Rao and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu too expressed shock over the accident. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and CMs of various States including Tamil Nadu’s MK Stalin and J&K’s Omar Abdullah and others also expressed anguish over the accident.

Telangana CMO is in contact with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Saudi Embassy to undertake necessary relief measures, according to an official note, which said Chief Secretary K Ramakrishna Rao had spoken with Coordination Secretary Gaurav Uppal in Delhi and issued required directives.

According to agency reports, the Indian Consulate in Madinah said it and the Indian embassy were in touch with the Saudi Haj and Umrah Ministry and other local authorities. “They are also in touch with Umrah operators concerned. A team of Consulate staff and Indian community volunteers is on the ground at various hospitals and sites,” it said in a press statement.