Ten pilgrims, including two children, died after their vehicle overturned and fell into a roadside ditch in Uttar Pradesh's Pilbhit this morning, the police said.
Seven people were injured in the incident, they added.
The vehicle was carrying 17 pilgrims from Haridwar in Uttarakhand and was heading towards Lakhimpur Kheri district in Uttar Pradesh when it met with the accident on the Lucknow highway at around 4 am.
"It seems the driver fell asleep and lost control over the vehicle," the police said.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the loss of lives and directed the officials to ensure proper relief and rescue work.
According to police, eight people died on the spot, while two succumbed to injuries in the hospital.
"Around 17 people were travelling in the vehicle. The dead include three children, three women and four men, including the driver," Assistant Regional Transport Officer (ARTO) Amitabh Rai said.
He said three of the injured have been referred from the district hospital to Bareilly.
Those who died have been identified as Laxmi, 28, Rachna 28, Sarla Devi 60, Hersh, 16, Khushi, 2, Sushant, 14, Anand, 3, Lalman, 65, Shyamsundar, 55 and driver Dilshad, 35, the police said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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