Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday expressed his condolences to the families of 17 people who lost their lives in a bus accident in Uttar Pradesh's Mainpuri district. 

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"My condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in a tragic accident in Mainpuri, Uttar Pradesh. I hope those who are injured recover at the earliest, PM Modi said in a tweet. 

16 men and one woman were killed while 20 other passengers were injured when the bus overturned after hitting a divider near Kiratpur village in Mainpuri district on Wednesday morning. The driver of the bus also sustained serious injuries.

The bus was carrying around 90 people and many of them were sitting on the roof. The bus was on its way to Farrukhabad from Jaipur in Rajasthan. A police officer said the private bus was carrying mostly labourers, who work in brick kilns and were returning to their native villages. 

According to PTI, the number plate of the bus revealed that it was registered in Farrukhabad (UP-76).

The bus overturned after hitting a divider in Tirathpur village located almost 25 km from the district headquarters on the Mainpuri-Etawah road, at around 5.30 am, Mainpuri Additional Superintendent of Police Om Prakash Singh told PTI.

Most of the victims belonged to Kannauj, Farrukhabad and Kanpur, Mainpuri District Magistrate Pradeep Kumar said. Police said efforts are underway to ascertain the identity of victims.

High speed was believed to be the cause of the accident. 

About half a dozen seriously injured passengers were shifted to Saifai Hospital and others are being treated at the Mainpuri district hospital. Three of the injured passengers have been referred to Agra.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanth has announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the families of those died and Rs 50,000 to the injured. He has also directed the CMO to provide free medical care to those injured.