Baripada (Odisha), Jul 13 (PTI) Three persons were killed and 14 others injured as their bus hit a truck from behind in Odisha's Mayurbhanj district on Saturday, police said.

The accident happened around 5.30 am on National Highway 18 near Budikhmari Square in the Betanati police station area, they said.

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The bus with 20 people on board was going towards Gaya from Hyderabad when the accident happened, they added.

"One of the deceased has been identified as bus driver Uday Singh of Charminar area of Hyderabad," a police officer said.

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The injured passengers were admitted to the Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College and Hospital in Baripada.

Additional District Medical Officer Bijay Kumar Das said the driver died on the spot while two others succumbed to their injuries while undergoing treatment.

Fourteen injured people were under treatment at the medical college, he said.

The truck driver escaped from the spot after the accident, the officer said.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed grief over the death of the pilgrims and announced Rs 2 lakh as ex gratia for the families of the deceased.

He directed the district administration to provide treatment to the injured persons free of cost.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)