Hyderabad: Fourteen people were killed and 20 others injured when a private bus plunged into a deep gorge in Andhra Pradesh, the police said.

The mishap took place near Chitwel-Rapur Ghat road on the border between Kadapa and Nellore districts, about 600 km from here late Thursday night.

The police said that the bus was carrying 70 people from the same extended family.

The vehicle fell into a 100-foot-deep gorge and got stuck in trees.

The driver apparently lost control of the overcrowded vehicle while negotiating a narrow curve, the police said.

Nellore Superintendent of Police B. Malla Reddy said the bus was carrying more people than its capacity and the driver was also drunk.

Fourteen people including four women and four children lost their lives in the accident. While 20 people were injured, the remaining were rescued by local people and the police.

The rescue work was hampered by darkness Thursday night and the bodies were recovered Friday.

The Balaji family had gone to the Sri Narasimha Swamy temple in Penchalakona of Nellore district for the tonsure ceremony of a child.

They were on their way back when the accident occurred.

Andhra Pradesh accounts for one of the highest number of road accidents in the country.

Accidents last year claimed more than 12,000 lives, the second highest figure after Tamil Nadu, which accounted for over 13,000 deaths.

The authorities blame rash driving for the majority of road accidents on state and national highways.

Source : ians