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19 lives were lost when a bus rammed a fallen motorbike on NH-44. The biker was allegedly intoxicated. Hyderabad police warn: drunk driving isn’t a mistake, it’s terror. Could one moment of negligence really destroy so many lives?
Hyderabad police will show "no mercy" to anyone driving drunk.
Kurnool: A horrific road tragedy on National Highway 44 (NH-44) near Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, has claimed at least 19 lives, after a private sleeper bus travelling from Hyderabad to Bengaluru caught fire in the early hours of Friday. The inferno was triggered by a collision with a motorbike that had fallen on the road moments earlier- the rider allegedly drunk.
The incident has reignited the national debate on drunk driving, prompting a strong reaction from Hyderabad Police Commissioner V C Sajjanar, who called intoxicated drivers “terrorists on the road.”
Reacting to the tragedy, Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar delivered a stinging rebuke to drunk drivers, calling their actions “acts of terror.”
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“Drunk drivers are terrorists. Period. Their actions are nothing short of acts of terror on our roads,” Sajjanar posted on X (formerly Twitter). “The horrific Kurnool bus accident was not an accident in the truest sense- it was a preventable massacre caused by an intoxicated biker’s recklessness.”
Condemning what he described as “a criminal act of negligence that annihilated entire families,” Sajjanar said his department would pursue a zero-tolerance policy against drunk driving.
Drunk drivers are terrorists. Period.
Drunk drivers are terrorists and their actions are nothing short of acts of terror on our roads. The horrific #Kurnool bus accident, which claimed the lives of 20 innocent people, was not an accident in the truest sense. It was a preventable… pic.twitter.com/oXTp0uOt2k
— V.C. Sajjanar, IPS (@SajjanarVC) October 26, 2025
Sajjanar vowed to intensify enforcement, saying, “Every single person caught driving under the influence will face the full force of the law. There will be no leniency, no exceptions, and no mercy for those who endanger innocent lives.”
He urged citizens to stop treating drunk driving as a “mistake,” emphasizing that it is a crime that destroys families and futures.
Vemuri Kaveri Travels sleeper bus was carrying passengers to Bengaluru when tragedy struck around 2:39 am. According to police reports, the vehicle rammed into a motorbike lying across the highway near Maddur village in Kurnool district.
Within seconds, sparks from the impact ignited fuel spilled from the bike’s tank, engulfing the bus in flames. The fire spread rapidly, giving passengers little time to escape. While several managed to break windows and flee, 19 people were charred to death, and many others sustained severe burn injuries.
Emergency responders rushed to the scene, but by the time the fire was doused, the vehicle was reduced to a skeleton of metal and ash.
Police investigation later revealed that the biker, identified as 20-year-old Panchala Shiva Shankar, was allegedly under the influence of alcohol. CCTV footage from a nearby petrol pump showed him and his friend Erriswamy refuelling their Pulsar motorbike with ₹300 worth of petrol shortly before the accident.
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“Shiva Shankar was visibly intoxicated at the petrol station,” a senior police official said. The duo was reportedly returning to Tuggali village when Shiva Shankar lost control of the bike and hit a road divider. He died on the spot, leaving his motorbike sprawled on the highway — a deadly obstacle for the speeding bus that followed moments later.
The Kurnool bus tragedy stands as a grim reminder of how a single act of recklessness can unleash devastation. Authorities are now working to identify all victims and provide relief to survivors.
As charred remains of the bus were removed from NH-44, investigators and citizens alike echoed one sentiment — that this was not merely an accident, but a man-made disaster born of negligence, one that could and should have been prevented.
