MEERUT, Aug. 26 -- At least 10 pilgrims, including two children, were killed and 41 others injured when a truck rammed into a tractor-trolley near the Arnia bypass on the Bulandshahr-Aligarh border in the early hours of Monday, police said. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and announced ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the next of kin and Rs 50,000 for the injured. He directed officials to provide proper treatment to the injured and wished them a speedy recovery. According to senior superintendent of police (rural) Dinesh Kumar Singh, the canter truck hit the tractor-trolley from behind, overturning it. The tractor-trolley, carrying 61 passengers, had been modified with two decks to accommodate the large group, despite a ban on using such vehicles for passenger transport in Uttar Pradesh. The pilgrims were travelling from Rafatpur village in Kasganj district to Jaharpeer in Rajasthan when the crash occurred around 2:10 am. The deceased were identified as tractor driver EU Babu, 40, Uma Shanker, 65, Rambeti, 65, Chandni, 12, Dhaniram, 40, Mokshi, 40, Shivansh, 6, Yogesh, 50, Vinod, 45 and Lekhraj, 40, all from Kasganj district. The bodies were sent for post-mortem examination. The injured were taken to different hospitals: 10 to Aligarh Medical College, 10 to Bulandshahr district hospital, and 23 to Kailash Hospital in Khurja. By afternoon, 18 had been discharged after primary treatment, while 10 others sustained minor injuries, police said. District magistrate Shruti, along with SSP Singh and other senior officials, visited the accident site and later met with the injured at the hospitals. The truck, registered in Haryana, has been impounded, and legal proceedings have been initiated, though the driver remains absconding, according to Meerut Range DIG Kalanidhi Naithani. He added that police are investigating the circumstances of the crash, and further action will follow as the probe progresses. Notably, the use of tractor-trolleys for passenger transport has been a recurring issue in the state. In February 2024, 23 people died in Kasganj district when a tractor-trolley carrying devotees overturned into a water body....