Three passengers were burnt alive and 23 others injured when a private bus caught fire near Rampura Phul town in south-west Punjab on Saturday evening, police said.
The injured were rushed to hospitals in Rampura Phul and Bathinda, police said.
The high casualties occurred due to the fact that it was an air-conditioned bus and the passengers were trapped inside for some time after the fire broke out.
Rampura sub-divisional magistrate Narinder Singh Dhaliwal said investigations suggested that the fire originated in the engine. Flames spread to the rest of the bus when it kept moving for more than 300 metres before it stopped.
Seventeen passengers have been admitted to Rampura Civil Hospital, four people who have suffered grave burns have been sent to a hospital in Ludhiana and two to Bathinda Civil Hospital.
The driver is believed to have fled the scene.
Two fire tenders were called for controlling the fire and after an hour fire was controlled.
