Forty-five people were killed in a bus accident in Indian northern city Shimla Tuesday, police said.

The bus was coming to Shimla, the state capital of Himachal Pradesh, from Kumarsain town when it fell into a 200-meter deep gorge.

Forty-five people were killed on the spot and five others were admitted to the hospital, a police official said, according to the Indo-Asian News Service.

The earlier report said at least 18 people, mostly women, were killed.

Police said 51 people were traveling in the bus when the accident took place. The condition of the injured is critical. One passenger is missing.

The rescue team had a tough time in extracting the victims from the bus, the report said. Himachal Pradesh's authorities have reached the spot to oversee the rescue and relief operations.

(Xinhua News Agency November 5, 2008)