Eighteen job seekers killed riding on top of Indian train

Eighteen young job seekers riding on the roof of an overcrowded train were killed today when it hit a low overhead bridge in northern India, police said. They were among about 200,000 people who had attempted to apply for 461 jobs offered by an Indian paramilitary force.

The unexpected turnout forced the Indo-Tibetan Border Force to postpone the recruitment drive yesterday in Bareilly, a town about 115 miles south-west of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh state.

Infuriated by the decision, protesters burned five buses and a petrol station in the town, said Brij Lal, a senior police officer.

They later crammed into trains to return home, and those who could not get into the coaches climbed onto the roofs. Fourteen people died on the spot when they hit the bridge and were thrown to the ground, while four others died overnight in hospital. Nine others remain in hospital.