Bus carrying 40 students caught in Uttarakhand's Dehradun, no injuries reported

Dehradun, Dec 18 (PTI) A bus carrying students from a university in Tamil Nadu caught fire here on Thursday, police said.

The students were evacuated in time, averting a major tragedy, they added.

The incident occurred near St. Jude Chowk on the Shimla Bypass road when a private bus carrying about 40 students from Madurai Agricultural University from Haridwar to the Forest Research Institute (FRI) suddenly caught fire, police said.

They said panic ensued in the bus due to the fire. Meanwhile, traffic police personnel and other passersby on the road managed to evacuate all the students before the fire intensified, thus averting a major disaster.

Fire tenders later arrived at the spot and brought the fire under control, they said.

Police said all the students are safe. However, their belongings were destroyed in the fire.

According to the police, the fire was possibly caused by a short circuit, but an investigation is underway to determine the exact cause. PTI DPT MNK SHS SHS