Bus falls into gorge near Rampur in Himachal Pradesh ;28 dead

At least 28 people died and nine injured in Himachal Pradesh's Rampur after a private bus rolled down a gorge in the hill state on Thursday morning, police said.

The bus with 40 passengers on board was on its way from Reckong Peo in Kinnaur to Solan and met the accident on National Highway 5 near Rampur, around 120km from Shimla. The deceased include 19 men and nine women. Out of 28, 21 bodies have been identified. Local administration rushed police and rescue personnel to the spot and a team of the National Disaster Response Force was on its way, said deputy commissioner of police Rohan Chand Thakur.

 

A combination photo shows the bus at the bottom of the gorge and rescuers moving towards the accident site. (HT Photos)

He added that Rs 10,000 per head has been distributed to the injured and relatives of identified dead as instant compensation. Besides police, fire



brigade Central Industrial Security Force personnel also carried out the rescue operation.

Though bursting of tyre is suspected to have caused the accident, a magisterial probe has been ordered. Sub-divisional magistrate Nipun Jindal will conduct the probe.

The injured have been taken to the nearest hospital. The possibility of higher casualties cannot be ruled out as the bus rolled down around 200 metres towards the bank of the Sutlej, Thakur said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Himachal governor Acharya Devvrat and chief minister Virbhadra Singh expressed grief over the mishap.

The deceased were identified as Reeta Devi, Jitender Kumar, Kamla Devi, Leela Devi, Shanti Devi, Sonika, Nisha, Leela Devi, Rajeev Rana, Nikhil, Sewa Ram, Ram Krishan, Charring, Arvinder Kumar, Reena Kumari, Tilak Raj, Kaushalya, Satya, Pratap, Ram Krishan and Shyam lal.