Madhya Pradesh bus accident: Over 45 dead, PM Modi announces ex-gratia

At least 45 people, including 20 women, were killed when a packed bus skidded off the road and plunged into a canal in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district on Tuesday morning, a senior official said.

The accident took place near Patna village, around 80 km from the Sidhi district headquarters, when the ill-fated bus was on its way to Satna from Sidhi, he said.

A search operation involving State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel and local authorities was still on at the site, the official said.

Rescuers have retrieved 45 bodies from the canal so far, said Rewa Divisional Commissioner Rajesh Jain, under whose jurisdiction the accident took place.