Vijayawada, June 24: Nine persons were killed and four others injured when a bus hit an auto-rickshaw in Andhra Pradesh's Kurnool district early on Sunday, police said.

The accident occurred near Somayajulapalle on Kurnool-Nandyal highway.

The state-owned Road Transport Corporation bus hit the auto, which was carrying 13 people. While seven died on the spot, two others succumbed in a nearby hospital. The injured were shifted to a government hospital in Kurnool.

According to the police, three auto-rickshaws were coming from wrong direction. While two vehicles passed safely, the third was hit by the bus.

A group of villagers from Penugondla and Kalapari villages had boarded the auto-rickshaws to go to Mahanandi village near Nandyal town for Naturopathy treatment. Most of the deceased were old and ill.

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Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.

AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.

“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.

He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.

“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.

According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.

In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.

AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.