The number of deaths was expected to rise from the accident at Luham in Salyan district, 450 kilometres (280 miles) north-west of the capital Kathmandu, as many of the injured were in critical condition, police said.
"Forty bodies were recovered from the accident site when the bus rolled down 250 meters (825 feet) off the road into a ravine Saturday morning. Two died while being rushed to a hospital," said district police officer Shankar Yadav.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2006