Twenty-two members of a marriage party were killed when the van in which they were travelling collided head on with a lorry in Andhra Pradesh on Monday.

Giving details, Adilabad Sub-Divisional Police Officer Thavaraya told rediff.com over phone that "the accident occurred around 11 am near Rollmamida village in Neradigonda police limits on National Highway 7 when a lorry loaded with a crane coming from Adilabad dashed against a van carrying 49 members of a marriage party on its way to the bridegroom's village."

"The collision resulted in the death of 22 persons, which included 13 women, 7 men and two boys. The remaining 27 persons, including the van crew, were injured and were shifted to Government hospital at Nirmal, about 35 km from the accident site, for treatment. The bodies of 22 deceased were also shifted to government hospitals at Adilabad and Nirmal for conducting post-mortem," the SDPO added.