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Imran Khan in Bhubaneswar
At least five chess players from Andhra Pradesh were killed in a road accident near Sakhigopal in Orissa on Sunday, police sources said.
Five others were critically injured in the accident, and admitted to the SCB Medical College hospital in Cuttack.
According to police sources the accident occurred when the Tata Sumo in which the 10-member chess team was travelling had a head-on collision with a bus.
The rest, including a top chess player of the country, PDS Girinath and his wife Jayalakshmi Girinath, are convalescing in the SCB Hospital in Cuttack.
A passenger of the bus, with which the Tata Sumo collided head-on, was also reportedly dead, sources said.
M Abhinav, a promising player from Andhra Pradesh, is among the dead. The others who died are Sekhar, Haricharan, D Minu and Madhuri.
Besides Girinath and his wife, the players who are battling for their lives are PK Sivani, her brother Siva Chaitanya and M Manogna. Six passengers of the bus are critically injured.
The players were on their way to participate in the five-day All-India Chess Tournament, scheduled to start in Puri on Monday.
According to the police, the accident occurred around 1 pm.
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