NEW DELHI, September 7 (RIA Novosti) - At least 18 people died and 23 were injured on Monday when an overcrowded bus fall into a ravine in India's northernmost Jammu and Kashmir state, the Times Now TV channel reported.

The death toll is expected to rise as nine of the injured were in serious condition in a hospital in the nearby city of Doda, local police said.

The accident happened some 145 kilometers (90 miles) from the city of Jammu when the driver of the bus was negotiating a sharp bend, the Press Trust of India news agency reported, quoting a local police official.

The bus plunged into a gorge on the banks of the Chenab River, and local media said the newly constructed road caved in.

Rescuers were working at the site, with several children reportedly among the dead.

Since January this year, over 150 people have been killed and more than 200 others injured in various road accidents in Jammu and Kashmir state's Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts, the Indian Express newspaper said. Poorly maintained vehicles and roads, and careless driving, are common causes of such accidents.