Bengaluru: At least 9 passengers were burnt to death, and over 20 others suffered severe burn injuries after a private bus caught fire in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district on Thursday.

According to media reports, the bus caught fire after a collision with a container truck near Hiriyur. Several passengers were shifted to nearby hospitals with serious burn injuries, and their condition is said to be critical.

The bus with 32 passengers, which was on its way to Gokarna, was engulfed in flames under the impact of the collision, and most of the deceased were burnt alive inside the vehicle, East Zone Inspector General of Police Ravikanthe Gowda said.

The accident happened after the truck jumped a road-divider and collided with the oncoming bus, Gowda told reporters.

The bus driver and cleaner escaped. The driver of the truck and its cleaner are among the dead.

Rescue and relief operations were launched immediately, with police, fire and emergency services rushing to the spot. The authorities have begun an investigation into the cause of the accident.

In a separate incident, nine people were killed on Wednesday after a government bus swerved to the opposite side and collided with two vehicles in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore. 

Chief Minister MK Stalin expressed shock over the deaths and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved families.

He directed the authorities to release from the CM's Public Relief Fund Rs 3 lakh to the families of each of the deceased. Also, the injured persons will receive Rs 1 lakh each, the government said in a statement, adding that of the dead, 5 were men and 4 were women.

A Chennai-bound state-run bus from Tiruchirappalli, while proceeding on the national highway near here, changed direction all of a sudden when a tyre burst and moved to the opposite direction after climbing onto the road median.