PM Modi condoles Greater Noida bus fire, announces ₹2 lakh ex gratia for families of deceased | India News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the Greater Noida bus fire, which killed nine people, on Thursday. In a statement from the PMO, an ex gratia amount of ₹2 lakhs for the families of the deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured.“Distressed to hear about the loss of lives due to a fire tragedy on a bus in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. Praying for the swift recovery of the injured,” read the statement issued by the prime minister's office on social media platform X.The PMO added that the ex gratia will be taken from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath also condoled the incident and spoke with the families of the victims as he called on officials to offer immediate assistance. Adityanath also announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh each for the families of those killed in the accident and ₹50,000 each for those injured. Bus catches fire in Greater Noida, 9 deadA sleeper bus in Greater Noida on the Yamuna Expressway caught on fire on Wednesday night, killing nine people and injuring several others.As reported by HT earlier, the police stated that the bus with 35 passengers was travelling from Noida to Mahoba when the incident took place in Dayanatpur village in Jewar, on the Yamuna Expressway.The bus driver and conductor managed to flee the spot, but were later caught by the police. An official statement from the Greater Noida police added that the fire was triggered by a spark in the bus's air conditioning unit.Also Read | Blast in AC set engine oil ablaze: What caused Greater Noida bus fire that killed 9"The fire broke out after a spark or blast in the bus’s AC caused the engine lubricating oil to catch fire, allowing the flames to spread rapidly," the statement said.The police added that the fire on the bus bearing a Bihar registration broke out around 11pm.