At least two people died and 34 others were injured after a bus they were travelling in fell into a gorge in Uttarakhand’s Tehri Garhwal district on Tuesday, reported the Hindustan Times. The identities of the dead, both women, are yet to be ascertained, said Praveen Alok, an official of the State Disaster Response Force.
The accident took place at 8 am on the Link Road near Badrinath National Highway, said police officials. The bus was on its way to Rishikesh and had 36 people on board, including a driver and a conductor, as opposed to its seating capacity of 22. The driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle, after which it skidded off the road and fell into a gorge 25 metres deep, said police.
Out of the 34 injured, 13 people were seriously injured and taken to a hospital in Rishikesh, said police officials. Others were provided first aid at a healthcare centre in Pav Ki Devi, where the accident happened, and released.
Alok said a team of 30 State Disaster Response Force members, with necessary equipment, was sent to the accident site. “They are yet to reach there, after which exact information about the injured and deceased could be extracted,” he said.
On August 24, four people died and three others were injured after their car fell down a deep gorge in Himachal Pradesh’s Shimla district. In another incident, 11 people died in a car accident in Himachal’s Kullu district after their car rolled down a gorge near the Rohtang Pass on Manali-Leh highway.
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