Kathmandu: A bus carrying passengers returning from a Hindu festival to the Nepali capital of Kathmandu skidded off the main highway and plunged into a river on Saturday, killing at least 31 people and leaving others trapped, officials said.

The accident occurred around dawn, around 50km west of the city on the Prithvi Highway that connects Kathmandu with the southern plains.

"We have recovered 31 bodies and are looking for more," government official Ram Mani Mishra said from the scene. "It's highly unlikely for anyone to survive for so long under water."

Rescuers on rubber boats and police divers managed to spot the bus hours after the crash . Reuters