Death Toll in Assam Highway Collision Rises to at Least Six, Eight Injured After Minibus Crosses Divider on NH-27

August 31, 2026

Sources: ANI, Xinhua, NDTV via Cobrapost, Northeast Media Hub, Northeast News. Verified across outlets. Casualty figures vary slightly by source and timestamp due to ongoing hospital admissions; six confirmed dead by police as of August 31 morning.

At least six people died and eight were injured when a passenger minibus traveling from Nagaon to Guwahati lost control, crossed the median divider on NH-27, and crashed head-on into an oncoming truck on the night of August 30, according to local police and multiple outlets. The accident was reported from the Khetri area in Assam's Kamrup (Metro) district. ANI reported the death toll rose to six by Monday, August 31; some sources put it as high as seven or eight, with discrepancies in hospital admission tallies. The DCP (East) of Guwahati Police Commissionerate confirmed six fatalities, and six injured persons were admitted to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH). Principal cum Chief Superintendent of GMCH Dr. Babul Bezbaruah told ANI that three bodies were taken to GMCH and six injured were under treatment. According to Kamrup (Metro) district police, the driver of the minibus lost control of the vehicle shortly before the crash; one claim reported by Northeast News alleges the vehicle hit a large pothole, causing the driver to veer across the divider. The crash triggered protests by local residents, who blocked the highway on Sunday night over the poor condition of the road. Protesters alleged the stretch had become accident-prone due to inadequate maintenance and demanded immediate repairs. The Morigaon district committee of the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) staged a demonstration in the heart of Morigaon and burned an effigy of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), expressing strong resentment over the poor management of the national highway. Local people shut down the operation of a toll gate near Sonapur following the deadly accident. NHAI has sought seven days to repair the roads and terminated the previous contractor. The accident also caused major traffic disruption, leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded for several hours, before senior officials took steps to ease congestion.