NEW DELHI, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- At least seven children and a driver were killed and six others injured Thursday after a private school van carrying them collided head-on with a tourist bus in central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, police said.

The accident took place in Birsinghpur area of Satna district, about 483 km northeast of Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh.

"This morning a tourist bus collided with a school van here killing seven children and van driver on spot," a police official said. "Six children injured in the accident were immediately removed to the nearest hospital."

The victims in the school van were aged between seven and 14 years.

Following the accident locals and police teams rushed to the spot to carry out rescue work.

Police have registered a case and ordered investigations into the accident

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan expressed grief over loss of lives in the accident and directed district administration to provide assistance to the injured.

Deadly road accidents are common in India often due to overloading, bad condition of roads and reckless driving.

Officials say an average of over 400 deaths take place every day in India due to road accidents.