A devastating fire aboard a private bus traveling from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur in Rajasthan on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, claimed the lives of 20 passengers, including three children, and left 16 others battling critical injuries. The tragic incident has sent shockwaves across the nation, prompting immediate government intervention and raising serious questions about passenger transport safety standards.
The Incident: A Routine Journey Turns Fatal
The ill-fated bus, operated by KK Travels and registered as RJ 09PA8040, departed from Jaisalmer at approximately 3:00 PM with 57 passengers on board. Within 10 to 20 kilometers of its journey along the Jaisalmer-Jodhpur highway near Thaiyat village, passengers noticed thick smoke emanating from the rear section of the vehicle.
Despite the driver’s swift action to pull over to the roadside, flames engulfed the entire bus within moments, trapping dozens of passengers inside. Eyewitnesses described horrifying scenes as passengers attempted to escape the rapidly spreading inferno. Many suffered burns of up to 70 percent on their bodies.
Local villagers, passersby, and personnel from the nearby Army Battle Axe Division rushed to assist in rescue efforts. The Army team, led by Major General Ashish Khurana, played a crucial role in the operation, using a JCB machine to break open the locked front door of the bus after electrical wiring damage rendered it inoperable.
Cause of the Tragedy: AC Short Circuit Suspected
Initial investigations point to a short circuit in the bus’s air-conditioning system as the likely cause of the fire. Pokhran MLA Pratap Puri informed reporters that the AC malfunction may have triggered a gas leak, which ignited and rapidly spread throughout the vehicle.
Adding to the tragedy’s severity, the bus had been recently converted into an AC sleeper coach just five days before the accident. The vehicle featured fiber body panels, curtains, and strong glass windows—all highly flammable materials that accelerated the fire’s spread. The converted interior design, combined with the locked exit door at the front, severely hampered evacuation efforts and trapped passengers inside the burning vehicle.
Some reports also suggested the possibility of illegal firecracker transportation aboard the bus, though this remains under investigation.
Rescue Operations and Medical Response
Nineteen charred bodies were recovered from inside the completely gutted bus. One critically injured passenger, 75-year-old Hussain Khan, succumbed to his injuries during transfer to Jodhpur, bringing the death toll to 20.
The 16 critically injured passengers were first rushed to Jawahar Hospital in Jaisalmer for emergency treatment before being transferred to Mahatma Gandhi Hospital and Shri Ram Hospital in Jodhpur for advanced care. A green corridor was created on National Highway 125 to facilitate rapid ambulance transfers with police escorts.
District Collector Pratap Singh reported that rescue operations faced significant delays as the bus’s metal frame remained extremely hot for nearly four hours after the fire was extinguished, preventing immediate body recovery. Many victims were burned beyond recognition, necessitating DNA testing and forensic analysis for identification.
By Tuesday night, officials had identified only seven victims: Rajendra Singh Chauhan (a local journalist), Hasina, Irfan, Barkat Khan, Gopilal, Ayub Khan, and Nasira. Six of the deceased were residents of Jodhpur, while the remaining victims were from Jaisalmer.
Government Response and Compensation
The tragedy drew immediate attention from the highest levels of government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep distress and announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of each deceased victim, and Rs 50,000 for each injured passenger.
President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President C.P. Radhakrishnan also conveyed their condolences to the bereaved families.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma traveled to Jaisalmer late Tuesday night to personally assess the situation and meet with officials, Army personnel, and affected families. The Chief Minister announced additional state government compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for the injured. He also canceled his scheduled visit to Patna for election campaigning to focus on the crisis.
“The incident of a bus catching fire in Jaisalmer is extremely heart-wrenching. Instructions have been given to the concerned authorities to ensure proper treatment for the injured and to provide all possible assistance to those affected,” CM Sharma stated.
Helpline Numbers and Support Services
To assist families searching for missing loved ones, district administrations in both Jaisalmer and Jodhpur issued multiple helpline numbers:
District Control Room, Jodhpur: 0291-2650349, 2650350
Mahatma Gandhi Hospital, Jodhpur: 09414159222
State Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), Jodhpur: 9414919021
Trauma Centre, Jawahar Hospital, Jaisalmer: 9460106451, 9636908033
Jaisalmer Helpline Numbers: 9414801400, 8003101400, 02992 252201, 02992 255055
Authorities requested family members of victims to provide DNA samples at designated centers for identification purposes.
Safety Concerns and Investigation
The incident has spotlighted critical safety deficiencies in India’s passenger transport sector. The bus, which was purchased and converted into an AC sleeper coach merely five days before the tragedy, reportedly lacked adequate safety features.
The fire brigade reached the accident site 45 minutes after being informed, raising concerns about emergency response times. Additionally, the locked front exit door, caused by burning electrical wiring, prevented passengers from escaping and significantly contributed to the high death toll.
Authorities have launched a comprehensive investigation to determine accountability and verify whether proper safety inspections were conducted on the recently modified vehicle. The probe will also examine whether inflammable materials or illegal goods such as firecrackers were being transported aboard the bus.
District Collector Pratap Singh and Jodhpur Divisional Commissioner Pratibha Singh are supervising the relief efforts and ongoing investigation.
India’s Road Safety Crisis
This tragedy underscores India’s persistent road safety challenges. According to the latest available government data from 2023, more than 480,000 accidents occurred on Indian roads, resulting in nearly 173,000 fatalities and approximately 463,000 injuries.
The Jaisalmer bus fire serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for stringent vehicle safety regulations, mandatory inspections for converted vehicles, improved emergency response systems, and better enforcement of passenger transport standards across the country.
As DNA testing continues to identify the remaining victims and investigations proceed to determine the exact cause and responsibility for this horrific incident, the affected families await closure while the nation mourns the loss of 20 innocent lives.
