A BUS veered off a bridge and plunged into a canal in western India yesterday, killing at least 44 schoolchildren and three adults, police said.

Their bodies have been recovered, but some children were still missing, said R.K. Patel, a senior police officer in Gujarat state. Four children were rescued.

The accident occurred in Vadodara, about 80 kilometers southwest of Ahmedabad, Gujarat’s main city.

The state-owned public bus was carrying more than 60 children and some passengers from three villages in the region, officials added.

They said the driver lost control after one of the tires burst and ploughed through a concrete railing on the bridge, plunging the bus into the canal.

“I was sitting in the last seat and suddenly I felt the bus going down,” said Sunil Thakore, 13, one of the few children who managed to swim to safety.

“I could see everything floating outside, and tried to call but there was no one around,” added Thakore, still shaking with fear. “I tried to pull my friend along, but it was impossible for me to swim with him.”

The driver of the bus, an assistant and a woman were among the dead, police said.

The children were studying at two separate schools and had taken the bus ride to reach their schools in time for their exams, police officers said.

Angry villagers said many children could have been saved if rescue operations started in time.

(SD-Agencies)