At least 21 people, including 11 members of a family in a marriage party, died and 23 others were injured when a state-transport bus they were traveling in fell into a canal in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday night.

The accident occurred when the driver lost control of the bus while trying to overtake a truck and it fell into the Hazara canal in Etah district, 265 kilometers from the state capital, Lucknow, the Press Trust of India reported, quoting police sources.

The injured passengers told police that the driver of the bus, which was bound for New Delhi, was drunk.

"The bus was jam-packed and we are told that more than 58 passengers were traveling in it," a senior official overseeing the rescue operations told PTI.

Among the dead were 11 members of a family, including a newlywed woman, returning from a marriage ceremony. The bodies of 21 people were fished out of the canal and 23 others were rescued by locals. The dead include 10 men, four women and seven children. Some passengers are missing and rescue operations are on to locate them.

According to District Magistrate M. Lokesh, some of the passengers rescued from the canal were still in critical condition, reported Zee News, a television channel. "Rescue operations are on as we have not been able to locate the missing passengers," he added.

India