Tiptur, Dec 26 (DHNS): Eight people were killed on the spot and more than 35 were injured after a speeding KSRTC bus rammed another bus coming in the opposite direction, near Siddapura gate in Tiptur taluk in the early hours of Friday. The deceased include a couple and the drivers of the two buses.

According to eyewitnesses, a speeding KSRTC bus bound for Shivamogga from Bengaluru suddenly swerved into right and rammed another KSRTC bus which was proceeding towards Bengaluru from Shivamogga.

They suspected that the driver have lost control over the vehicle or dozed off at the wheels.

Due to the impact of the collision, the front portion of the Bengaluru-bound was ripped off and its tyre burst. On hearing the crash sound, local people rushed to the spot and helped in rescue operation.

The deceased have been identified as Maharudra (35) of Kittur in Belagavi district, Anandappa (45) of Chitradurga, both drivers; Udayashankar (60) and his wife Rukmini (55) of Shivamogga; Chayadevi (58) of Shivamogga; Prakash Perumal (30) of Salem; Srinivasulu (34) of Tiruvallur and Anand (25) of Hosanagar in Shivamogga district.

Ravi, the conductor of Bengaluru-bound bus, said that they had to struggle to extricate the bodies from the mangled remains. The injured were shifted by ambulances to hospitals in Arsikere, Tiptur, Tumakuru and Bengaluru.Traffic went haywire on the road for more than two hours due to the accident.