An injured person being treated at a hospital after a minibus carrying around 17 passengers veered off the road and fell into a 15-foot-deep drain on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, in Kota district, Rajasthan on Saturday (October 17, 2026).
| Photo Credit: PTI

Eight persons from Madhya Pradesh’s Betul district were killed and 15 injured after a tempo traveller veered off the road and fell into a 15-foot-deep drain on Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Rajasthan on Saturday (October 17, 2026) morning, police said.

Other injured, eight of whom are critical, were rushed to the New Medical College Hospital (NMCH) and the MBS Hospital, officials said.

The accident occurred around 6 a.m. near pole number 384 on the Expressway, under Simliya police station limits, in Kota district of the neighbouring State, officials said.

Emergency personnel immediately launched rescue operations, but the silt and water accumulated inside the drain severely hampered their efforts. Cranes were later deployed to retrieve the vehicle and rescue trapped passengers.

Betul Superintendent of Police Virendra Jain informed that the eight killed were relatives from Ghatbiroli village, around 65 km from the Betul district headquarters. According to Kota Superintendent of Police Sujit Shankar, the group had come to Rajasthan for a four-day tour and was heading to a temple in Rajasthan when the accident occurred.

Multai police station house officer Vikas Patel said he had visited the bereaved families and informed them about the tragedy.

There were around 23 passengers inside the vehicle, and most of them were asleep when the accident happened, an injured passenger, Anshika said, adding that the driver might have dozed off.

Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav directed officials to provide Rs 4 lakh each to the kin of the deceased, along with all possible assistance required during this difficult time. In a post on X, he described the accident as extremely tragic and distressing.

Published – October 17, 2026 11:25 am IST