17 injured as private and TNSTC buses collide head-on near Mannargudi

Seventeen people were injured when a private bus and a government TNSTC bus collided head-on near Kottur, close to Mannargudi, on Sunday afternoon.

Police said the private bus was travelling from Mannargudi towards Thiruthuraipoondi, while the government bus was on its way from Vedaranyam to Thanjavur when the collision occurred at Kottur. The impact left passengers in both vehicles with serious injuries.

Those injured include Mahendramani, 48, driver of the government bus; conductor Senthilkumar, 35; and passengers Deepa, 25, and Sathya, 34, of Mannargudi; Selvi, 62, of Nathanpalam; Selvaraj, 59, of Adichapuram and his wife Gomathi, 49; Aishwarya, 35, of Needamangalam; and Malar, 40.

Nine of the injured were admitted to Tiruvarur Government District Headquarters Hospital in Mannargudi, while eight others were taken to Thiruthuraipoondi Government Hospital.

Kottur police have registered a case and initiated an investigation into the cause of the accident.