At least 23 people were killed and 27 others injured when an overcrowded bus rammed into a speeding truck near Chenaki More, around 30 km from here.
The accident occurred when the driver of the bus lost control over the vehicle while negotiating a sharp bend near a village, senior superintendent of police Amit Jain said.
While 17 bodies were extricated from the wreckage, six passengers succumbed to injuries on way to hospitals, the police said. The bus, with about 75 passengers inside and many others on its roof, was going to Gaya from here.
Most of the injured were admitted to Patna medical college hospital (PMCH) where the condition of 10 was stated to be critical, sources said adding others were being treated at Dhanarua and Masaurhi government hospitals.
The fate of drivers of both the vehicles was not yet known while the helper of the truck was among the injured.
The helper said that the bend was so sharp that the bus could not be seen from the other side. Chief minister Nitish Kumar announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 50,000 to the next of kin of the dead.
Meanwhile, villagers blocked the Patna-Jehanabad-Gaya highway for several hours demanding that the state government pay compensation of Rs five lakh to the families of each of the deceased.
They also pelted stones and gheraoed Patna district magistrate J.K. Sinha near the accident site.
—PTI