The pilgrims were returning from the Ghazi Miyan ki Dargah in Bahraich after attending an Urs. The bus ploughed into the truck at Tilwarai at around midnight on Friday. The passengers were on their way to Ajmer in Rajasthan.

While 16 charred bodies have been sent for autopsy, the disaster site suggests that the magnitude of the tragedy could be much higher, as the bus was packed to capacity.