Important Facts of the News
- June 2022, Kalaburagi, Karnataka: 7 people died after a sleeper bus caught fire.
- October 2022, Nashik, Maharashtra: 12 people including a two-year-old child died after a private bus collided with a truck.
- July 1, 2023, Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway: 26 people died after a bus hit a pole and its diesel tank caught fire.
- November 2023, near Gurugram-Delhi: A bus caught fire leading to 2 deaths and 12 injuries.
- October 19, 2024, Dholpur, Rajasthan: A collision between a sleeper bus and a tempo resulted in 12 deaths.
- May 15, 2025, Begusarai to Delhi route: A fire incident caused the death of 5 people including 2 children.
- October 14, 2025, Jaisalmer to Jodhpur: 26 passengers lost their lives when a sleeper bus caught fire while moving.
- October 24, 2025, Hyderabad to Bengaluru: 20 people including a motorcyclist died after a bus caught fire near Kurnool.
- Near Gurugram-Jaipur Highway: 2 people died and 29 were injured in a sleeper bus fire.
- At Agra-Lucknow Expressway near Rewari Toll Plaza: A sleeper bus carrying 70 passengers caught fire, all were safely evacuated.
Frequent incidents involving sleeper buses catching fire on major highways have raised serious questions regarding travel safety for long-distance passengers. Several tragic events recorded over the last few years reflect recurring patterns of vehicle malfunction, high-speed collisions and lack of adequate emergency measures in these buses. The consequences have often been devastating, with many passengers trapped in confined bunks, making escape difficult when fire spreads quickly.
Repeated Incidents Across Different States
In June 2022, Kalaburagi in Karnataka saw seven lives lost when a sleeper bus was engulfed in flames. A few months later in October 2022, a private bus travelling from Nashik toward Mumbai collided with a truck, leading to the death of 12 passengers, including a young child.
The tragedy on July 1, 2023 along the Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway remains one of the most severe cases. A tire burst caused the vehicle to hit a roadside structure, igniting the diesel tank and resulting in 26 fatalities. Similar patterns appeared in November 2023 near Delhi-Gurugram where a bus caught fire, taking two lives and injuring twelve others.
Serious Loss of Lives in 2024 and 2025
October 2024 witnessed another heartbreaking accident near Dholpur in Rajasthan, where a sleeper bus collided with a tempo late at night, leaving 12 people dead. A May 2025 journey from Begusarai to Delhi turned tragic when a bus caught fire on the Bihar-Lucknow highway, taking five lives including two children.
On October 14, 2025, a sleeper bus travelling from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur caught fire while moving, resulting in 26 passengers being burnt alive. Ten days later, a similar incident occurred near Kurnool on the Hyderabad-Bengaluru route, where 20 people including a motorcyclist lost their lives after the bus burst into flames.
Near Misses Also Highlight Urgency
Two more incidents underscore ongoing vulnerability. A sleeper bus on the Gurugram-Jaipur highway caught fire leading to two deaths and multiple injuries. On the Agra-Lucknow Expressway near the Rewari Toll Plaza, a bus carrying seventy passengers caught fire but prompt action ensured all could escape safely.
These repeated events suggest that mechanical failures, inadequate fire-protection systems and emergency exits not suited for bunk layouts may contribute to high fatality numbers. The growing frequency of such accidents indicates an urgent need for strict inspections, safer bus designs and improved evacuation readiness for passengers.