DHAKA - At least 20 people were killed and 30 injured when two buses collided head-on in northern Bangladesh on Monday, police said.

The accident took place at Baraigram in Natore, 220 km (137 miles) away from Dhaka, the capital. The death toll could rise as some of the injured were in critical condition, police official Mohammad Manirul Islam told Reuters.

Road accidents are common in impoverished Bangladesh. They are often blamed on reckless driving, poor roads and aged vehicles, and kill around 10,000 people a year.