Thirteen killed in three separate road accidents across Uttar Pradesh during Diwali festivities

LUCKNOW — Thirteen people lost their lives across Uttar Pradesh in three separate road accidents within a four-hour window during the Diwali festivities, local authorities reported.

The tragedies—involving a vehicle fire, an overturned tractor-trolley carrying pilgrims, and a high-speed bus crash—unfolded across Muzaffarnagar, Chitrakoot, and Lucknow. Local police, fire brigades, and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel were deployed to conduct rescue operations and transport the injured to medical facilities.

The deadliest incident occurred in Muzaffarnagar district, where a speeding car crashed into a divider and overturned near Jagahedi within the Titawi police station area. The vehicle immediately caught fire, resulting in the deaths of all six occupants, including a woman and a child, who were burned to death. According to official records, the victims were residents of Jind district in Haryana and were traveling toward Haridwar.

In Chitrakoot district, a tractor-trolley accident claimed the lives of four pilgrims, including an infant, and left 12 others injured. The incident took place on the Jhansi-Mirzapur National Highway near the Ramnagar town power house in the Raipura police station area, when a hitch broke, causing the uncontrolled trolley to overturn off the highway. The victims were returning after participating in a deepdaan event. Among the dead, three hailed from Rewa in Madhya Pradesh and one from Prayagraj district. Seven of the injured were in serious condition and were referred from the Community Health Centre in Ramnagar to the District Hospital.

A third major accident took place on the Agra Expressway in Lucknow, where a private bus carrying 53 passengers from Rajasthan to Bihar suffered a tire burst. The bus lost control and plunged 15 feet down from the elevated road. The crash resulted in three deaths and left multiple passengers, including women and children, injured.

Rescue teams and medical personnel responded to all three sites to manage evacuations and provide emergency treatment to the survivors.