UP road tragedy: 6 killed as pickup carrying Maha Kumbh returnees rams into trailer truck in Ghazipur; 10 injured

In atragic incident, six people were killed and 10 were wounded after the vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a truck in the Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh.

The victims were returning home from Maha Kumbh Mela being held in Prayagraj.

The accident took place on Varanasi-Gorakhpur four-lane highway near Kusumhi Kalan village in Ghazipur on Friday afternoon, when a trailer truck hit the Maha Kumbh devotees’ pickup truck.

Among those killed were two men, two women and two children.

The injured devotees have been sent to a nearby hospital for medical assistance.

Stampede: Probe panel reaches Prayagraj

The deadly road accident comes days after a stampede at Sangam Nose on early Wednesday, that led to the demise of 30 devotees.

Sangam Nose is a triangular landmass that is sandwiched between the river Ganga in the north and the river Yamuna in the south before they merge.

According to police, the stampede broke out as the crowd jumped barricades, crushing those waiting for their turn on the other side.

Earlier on Friday, a three-member judicial panel set up by the Uttar Pradesh government to probe the Maha Kumbh stampede reached Prayagraj and visited the incident spot at Sangam Nose.

The panel is headed by Harsh Kumar, a retired judge of the Allahabad High Court, and comprises former director general of police (DGP) VK Gupta and retired IAS officer DK Singh.

"The commission is holding meetings with officials concerned here. We may also visit the incident spot later in the day," an official told PTI.

At Sangam Nose, the panel was briefed by Mela Adhikari Vijay Kiran Anand, DIG Vaibhav Krishna, and SSP Rajesh Dwivedi.

The judicial panel was formed in the wake of the stampede that occurred on Mauni Amavasya day.

The commission has a month to wrap up its investigation but will try to expedite it, Kumar, the panel head, said on Thursday.