Shamli (UP)/UNI: Around 17 passengers were injured when a private bus in a bid to save a motorcycle coming from the opposite direction overturned in the Garhi Pukhta area of Shamli district here in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday, the police said here.

A police spokesperson said that the incident took place near Gandewara bus station when in a bid to save a motorcyclist, the private bus overturned in a moat.

"Around 50 passengers were travelling in the bus and several of them sustained injuries in the accident," he said.

He said that the passengers were rescued by the local residents by smashing the window panes of the bus and 17 people were taken to the government hospital in Thana Bhawan with the help of the ambulance.

"The injured included Gulnaaz, Jaitun, Abu Bakar, Prachi, Tanu, Saloni, Sharda, Premo, Mangal Das, Avina, Samreen, Karmaveer, Harphool and Angoori," he added.

The spokesman said that District Magistrate Ravindra Singh has directed to provide all medical facilities to the injured and an inquiry into the incident.

Additional DM Santosh Kumar Singh said that an inquiry into the reason behind the incident will be done and strict action will be taken against whoever is found guilty of it.

He said that it will also be probed whether the bus was running according to the standards or not.