Patna: Runnisaidpur police have lodged an FIR against the driver and owner of the private bus agency over Saturday's road mishap in Sitamarhi district that killed 14 people and left over 37 people injured.

Station house officer Shiv Narain Ram said driver Vinay Rai and owner Santosh Choudhary have been booked for rash driving, negligence and culpable homicide, not amounting to murder. Vinay, from Chapra village in Muzaffarpur is still at large, while Santosh from Rampur Hari in Muzaffarpur was arrested on Saturday night.

Rai said the toll reached 14 with two more injured succumbing to their injuries at Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH) in Muzaffarpur late on Saturday night.

The police are probing the role of district transport officer of Muzaffarpur as the bus was found operating without a fitness certificate. Sources said the fitness certificate of the bus belonging to an agency, Chandan Rath, lapsed on August 28 last year, but it still continued operations from the Muzaffarpur bus stand at Bairia to Aurai through Runnisaidpur in Sitamarhi district, around 120km north of Patna.

The bus had left the bus stand around 4pm on Saturday. Locals said the driver lost control because of high speed and the vehicle hit the railings of the overbridge near Bhasanpatti before plunging about 30 feet into a dry canal around 5.30pm, leading to the death of eight persons. Four others succumbed to injuries on their way to the hospital.

Deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi visited SKMCH at Muzaffarpur on Sunday and met the injured being treated there.

He directed the hospital authorities to take proper care of the patients.

Modi said the state administration has identified 124 spots across Bihar as accident prone, and constituted a committee to suggest measures to check road accidents.

The committee is being headed by the safety commissioner. It has been asked to submit its report within three months. Besides, speed governors would be installed in vehicles to check the speed limit. "The process to issue driving licences to individuals is also being made tough," Modi said.

He also announced opening an institute to impart training on road-safety measures. The government has also sent a proposal to the Centre to make road safety rules harsher and raise the quantum of punishment for the guilty.