From correspondents in West Bengal, India, 06:01 PM IST

At least seven people died after the bus in which they were travelling fell off a bridge on the rail tracks near the Howrah station in West Bengal Saturday, police said here.

The accident took place around 4 p.m. when the bus fell from Bankim Setu on the railway tracks, almost 50 feet below the bridge.

'Rescue operation is on. We are apprehending that at least six to seven people are dead in the accident and another five or more are injured,' a police official told IANS.

Police and railway medical teams have rushed to the spot.

'The bus fell between the two platforms (11 and 12). We have stalled operations in platforms from Platform No 10 to 23. But local trains are plying normally,' Eastern Railway's chief public relations officer Samir Goswami said.

'Operations on those platforms have been stopped because we have cut the electricity supply following the accident,' Goswami added.

A number of long distance trains were held up.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)