Kaziranga road accident: MP Phangnon Konyak mourns at least 23 dead at Rongajan

GOLAGHAT – Rajya Sabha MP S. Phangnon Konyak on Friday expressed grief over the Kaziranga road accident at Rongajan in Assam’s Golaghat district, where a passenger minibus and a container truck collided head-on, killing at least 23 people. Several others were injured, some critically.

In a post on Facebook, Konyak, who became Nagaland’s first woman member of the Rajya Sabha in 2022, said she was “deeply saddened by the tragic loss of so many lives in the road accident earlier today at Rongajan, near Kaziranga, in Golaghat district of Assam.”

Phangnon Konyak’s message after the Kaziranga road accident

“This is a deeply distressing tragedy for all of us. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and pray for strength and comfort during this difficult time. I also pray for the speedy recovery of all those injured,” the MP wrote.

She added that “the Assam Government is working on a war footing to ensure that all possible assistance and support reach those affected.” The post appeared as a joint post with the MyGov Assamese page.

What is known about the Kaziranga road accident

The collision took place at around 2.35-2.40 pm on Friday at Rongajan, under Kohora police station, The Free Press Journal reported. The Assam Tribune placed the site on National Highway 715, near Hathikuli Tea Estate in the Kohora range of Kaziranga.

The minibus, a Traveller vehicle, was heading from Bokakhat towards Nagaon, while the container truck was travelling towards Jorhat, according to the two reports. Most of the passengers were reportedly students, and The Assam Tribune said some of the dead were believed to be students of Kaziranga College.

Golaghat Senior Superintendent of Police Swapnanil Deka put the death toll at 23. Some later reports, including Northeast Now, said the toll had risen to 24; Nagaland.News has not been able to confirm the higher figure independently. Reports put the number of seriously injured at between seven and 11.

Police and local residents pulled passengers out of the mangled minibus. The injured were first taken to Kohora Model Hospital, and those with serious injuries were referred to Jorhat Medical College and Hospital, according to the reports.

Speeding suspected; probe under way

SSP Deka said preliminary investigations pointed to over-speeding and a violation of traffic restrictions near Kaziranga, saying the bus “was running at very high speed and was violating restrictions imposed near the park”, IANS reported. The stretch of highway runs along Kaziranga National Park, where speed limits are enforced to protect wildlife.

The minibus reportedly had a seating capacity of 27, but The Assam Tribune said more than 35 people were believed to be on board. The exact number of passengers and the cause of the crash have not been officially confirmed, and the names of the dead had not been released at the time of writing.

Government response and ex-gratia

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “deeply anguished by the loss of lives in the mishap in Golaghat district of Assam” and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of each person killed and Rs 50,000 for each of the injured, IANS reported.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma called it “a very sad and tragic event”, while Cabinet Minister Atul Bora visited the site and oversaw rescue and relief work with the district administration. “All of Assam stands with them in this hour of grief,” Sarma said, Northeast India 24 reported. No separate Assam government ex-gratia had been announced at the time of writing.

The Kaziranga road accident follows other recent tragedies in the Northeast reported by Nagaland.News, including the Parsi-Parlo house fire in Arunachal Pradesh and the accident that killed Delhi University scholar Heya Wangnao.