India bus crash 'claims 25 lives'

The bus reportedly collided with a truck

At least 25 people died and dozens were hurt when a passenger bus crashed into a stationary truck in north-east India.

The bus was carrying workers to their jobs before dawn in Assam state's Dhubri district, some 300km (186 miles) west of the state capital, Guwahati.

Police said more than 40 people were injured when the bus hit the stationary truck laden with potatoes.

Road accidents claim hundreds of lives every year in India. Most are blamed on reckless driving and ageing vehicles.

"The bus carrying 67 passengers hit a stationary potato-laden truck with great speed, leading to the fatalities," police officer Parthasarathi Mahanta was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

Mr Mahanta said the driver of the bus, which had a capacity of only 35 passengers, lost control and collided with the parked truck, reducing both vehicles to "a mass of mangled steel".