Thirteen children dead after India school bus and train crash

Incident took place at unmanned railway crossing in Telengana state

File photograph of  Indian passengers travel in a over crowded local train at Ballygunge station in Calcutta, eastern India. Photograph: Piyal Adhikary/EPA
File photograph of Indian passengers travel in a over crowded local train at Ballygunge station in Calcutta, eastern India. Photograph: Piyal Adhikary/EPA

Thirteen children have been killed when a train crashed into their school bus at an unmanned railway crossing in southern India.

Police officer Ravi Nallamala says another 16 children aged seven to 14 have been injured in the accident and taken to hospital in Medak district in Telengana state.

The area is around 930 miles south of New Delhi.

Accidents are common on India’s rail network, one of the world’s largest with 20 million people riding daily on about 11,000 passenger trains.

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Most accidents are blamed on poor maintenance and human error.

PA