Ankola: NWKRTC bus falls into ditch as driver fails to maouevre steep turn at Vaddi Ghat; 49 injured
Ankola: In a road accident that reportedly occurred in the taluk on Saturday night, 49 people including the driver of a state transport bus were injured as the bus fell into a trench at a turn on the Vaddi Ghat. No casualty was reported in the accident.
The North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) bus was taking 49 passengers from Ballari to Kumta.
With the road work going on along the Kumta-Sirsi stretch, vehicles have been forbidden from using route. The NWKRTC bus involved in the accident on Saturday diverted to the Vaddi Ghat route. The driver, however, failed to manouevre on a dangerous turn on the Ghat and, as a result, the vehicle fell into the ditch and repeatedly toppled three times.
The passengers reportedly sustained minor injuries and the locals helped to get them out of the ditch immediately. The passengers were sent in private vehicles for treatment at hospitals in Ankola and Kumta.
The matter was brought to the notice of Ankola Police and Transport Department officials, who rushed to the scene and inspected the situation.
The locals as well as Zilla Panchayat member GM Shetty told the officials that the turns on the Vaddi Ghat were dangerous and steep, making it difficult for drivers to manage. They urged the officers to widen and repair the road and take additional safety measures to prevent accidents along the route.
A case has been filed at the Ankola Police Station and investigation is on.
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PM Modi arrives in Netherlands on second leg of his five-nation tour
Amsterdam (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the Netherlands on Friday on the second leg of his five-nation tour, during which he will hold talks with his Dutch counterpart Rob Jetten to further deepen bilateral cooperation in areas such as trade, technology, defence and renewable energy.
The prime minister arrived in the Netherlands after a brief stopover of around two-and-a-half hours in the UAE, where he held talks with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi.
Modi's visit to the European nation from May 15 to 17 is his second trip to the country after his 2017 visit and comes at what officials described as an "important juncture" in India-Netherlands ties.
During the visit, Prime Minister Modi will hold bilateral talks with PM Jetten and will also meet King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima.
Modi is also expected to address the Indian community and interact with leading Dutch business leaders during the visit.
MEA officials said the visit carries a “rich and substantive agenda” and is expected to consolidate the strategic dimensions of the partnership that have emerged through sustained engagement between the two countries.
India and the Netherlands have significantly expanded cooperation in recent years beyond traditional sectors such as trade, investment and the priority areas of water, agriculture and health.
The partnership has grown in strategic sectors, including technology, innovation, defence, security, semiconductors, renewable energy, education and the maritime domain, the MEA said.
The Netherlands is one of India’s largest trade destinations in Europe, with bilateral trade valued at USD 27.8 billion in 2024-25. It is also India’s fourth-largest investor, with cumulative foreign direct investment amounting to USD 55.6 billion, officials said.
People-to-people ties remain a key pillar of the bilateral relationship. The Netherlands is home to more than 90,000 non-resident Indians and persons of Indian origin, besides over 200,000 members of the Suriname-Hindustani community. Around 3,500 Indian students are currently enrolled in Dutch universities.
Officials noted that Modi's visit to the Netherlands and three other European nations -- Sweden, Norway, and Italy -- comes against the backdrop of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement finalised earlier this year and the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement signed in 2025.
