New Delhi - At least 16 people were killed and several injured when a bus fell into a roadside canal in India's eastern Kolkata metropolis on Friday, a media report said.

The accident occurred when the private bus carrying 40 passengers tried to overtake an autorickshaw and fell into the canal, the CNN-IBN news channel reported.

Fifteen injured passengers were taken to nearby hospitals. Doctors said the death toll could rise as two injured were in a "serious" condition.

India has one of the worst road-safety records in the world and registers the highest number of road fatalities after China.(dpa)