Kolkata: At least 40 persons were killed when a Kolkata-bound luxury bus from Orissa collided head-on against a loaded truck at Baliara on national highway (NH) 34 in Howrah district on January 28 morning, SP Rajesh Kumar said.

The accident occurred between 4.30 to 5.00 am (IST) when a loaded Tata 407 truck collided head on with the bus apparently due to dense fog, Kumar said.

The bus immediately overturned and caught fire under the impact of the collision and most of the 55 passengers, trapped inside were charred to death, he said.

"It is difficult to say the exact number of casualties at this stage but at least 40- 42 persons have died. We have rescued about 15 to 17 passengers," he said.

He said the fire has been completely doused and the highway would be cleared soon for traffic.

Two phone lines numbers 26616527 and 26616277 were set up at the nearby Panchla block developments officer's (BDO) office to provide information about the passengers, official sources said.

PTI