Kathmandu: At least 18 Indian pilgrims were killed and 53 others injured when an overloaded bus carrying them veered off a mountain road and rolled about 100 meters before plunging into a river in western Nepal, officials said today.

"All 18 people who died in the accident were Indian nationals, mostly from Uttar Pradesh," Chief District Administrator Ram Bahadur Purumbang told PTI. A total of 56 people were injured in the accident when the bus plunged into the Madi river in Pyuthan district, 750 km west of Kathmandu last night.