At least 20 devotees including children were killed and several others sustained injuries after a passenger van met an accident at Indus Highway near Khairpur on Thursday.
As per the details garnered, the ill-fated incident took place when a passenger van carrying devotees including women and children heading towards Sehwan Sharif from Khairpur fell in cut made for flood water at Indus Highway near Khairpur.
According to police, 20 bodies have been retrieved from the cut and shifted to Syed Abdullah Shah Institute Sehwan Sharif. The dead also include eight women and 10 children and two men, while several others injured.
It may be recalled that a 30-feet-wide cut was made through Indus Highway to speed up the flow of water into the Indus River from areas which came under water as a result of earlier relief cuts two months ago.
Eye witnesses said that the cut was not closed for two months due to the negligence of the National Highways Authority due to which the accident took place.