A truck driver and a college student were killed in twin frontal collisions on two national highways, one near Jamshedpur and another close to Bokaro, on Thursday.

Five persons, including another college student, were injured in the double accident. Two of the injured have been hospitalised and one among them is critical.

The first mishap took place along NH-33, 20km from Jamshedpur, around 5am. A Ranchi-bound coach from Calcutta, whose driver might have been dozing, rammed into a truck coming from Jamshedpur and headed for Ghatshila near a Kali temple at Belajuri village along the highway.

According to local sources, there were 35 passengers, including children, on board the private bus, but all the victims - one dead and four injured - were men.

"After the accident, most of the traumatised passengers left their belongings and walked down the road to seek another vehicle to ferry them. Luckily, they came across an almost empty bus coming from Ghatshila. They boarded that bus while the injured were left writhing in pain," said local resident Sanatan Gope who informed MGM police station.

OC Vinod Singh reached the spot around 6.30am after which the injured were taken to MGM Medical College and Hospital in Sakchi. Three were released after treatment while the fourth is critical.

OC Singh said the deceased had been identified as Pankaj Kumar (26), the truck driver and a resident of Chhota Govindpur area of Jamshedpur. "Another man in his early forties has sustained serious injuries. He seems to be the driver of the private bus. We have informed the owner of the coach company, White Horse, in Calcutta. His people are on their way to Belajuri to take possession of luggage left behind by passengers."

On what might have triggered the fatal accident, the officer said they suspected that the driver of the coach, which was travelling a longer distance, had fallen asleep and lost control of the vehicle. He added that the body of the truck driver had been sent to MGM Medical College in Dimna for post-mortem.

Till the filing of this report in the evening, none of the mangled vehicles had been removed and a police party was on guard at the spot.

The other accident took place along NH-23, 14km from Bokaro steel city, around 3pm.

Second-year students of Bindeshwari Parsad Dubey College in Bermo Mohammad Irfan and Mohammad Sayeed, both in their early twenties, were taking a speedy spin on Irfan's new, burly bike when they collided head-on with a trekker at Balidih.

While Irfan, a resident of Pichri village in Bermo, died on the spot, Sayeed who lives in Rajabera in the same subdivision suffered multiple injuries and is admitted to Bokaro General Hospital. None was wearing a helmet.