Two passengers and a spare driver were killed and six others severely injured when the bus in which they were travelling from Hyderabad to Bangalore rammed into a truck around 7 a.m. on Saturday near Kodikonda checkpost in Anantapur district on Andhra Pradesh-Karnataka border.
Eyewitnesses told The Hindu that the driver of the bus tried to overtake the truck carrying full load of cement when it lost control and hit. It crushed the spare driver who was sitting next to the driver's cabin.
The two passengers seated in the front row were thrown out of the bus and came under its wheels and died on the spot.
Six other passengers were also injured severely and were admitted to a nearby hospital where they are being treated.
The bus driver came out unscathed and the eye witnesses accused him of rash driving resulting in the accident.
The bodies have been shifted to the Hindupur government hospital for post mortem while they are yet to be conclusively identified, the police said. All the passengers are from Hyderabad and stared the journey last night.