An injured person being treated at Capital hospital after the accident on NH-5 near Patrapara, on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar on Sunday. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 5: One person died and five were injured after a bus of an engineering college ran into several motorcycles near Patrapara Square on the city outskirts.

The incident took place when a number of motorists had stopped on the way seeing a man lying injured on the road following a road mishap.

The incident took place this evening when the bus, which was returning to the college campus, lost control and rammed into four motorcycles.

Eyewitnesses said that a number of people had gathered at the spot to rescue an accident victim. The bus failed to apply the brakes and ran into the motorcycles.

Pattamundai resident Prasanna Giri, 30, who was critically injured in the mishap, died on the way to Capital Hospital.

“While I was travelling with my friend on a motorcycle, I saw people gathering at a spot. When I applied brake, a bus hit me and I fell down,” said Dhruba Abhisek Singh, an injured. Singh is a fourth-year student of a nearby private engineering college and was returning to his hostel near Patrapara with his friend after attending tuition.

Subham Kumar, a first-year engineering student who was on the pillion, was also injured in the accident.

A private company employee Jayprakash Nayak and one of his relatives Bidyadhar Nayak, who were travelling in another motorcycle, were also injured.

Tension erupted at the spot following the accident as the irate mob blocked the NH-5 for around 20 minutes. Later, police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

The police said that the bus was returning with college staff from a picnic.

“We have seized the bus and detained the driver,” said inspector in-charge of Khandagiri police station Sanjib Satpathy. The police are also suspecting drink driving behind the accident.

On December 1, three people were killed and a dozen others injured after a sand-laden tipper coming down the Khandagiri hills had rammed into several vehicles at the Khandagiri traffic square.