22 killed after bus carrying pilgrims falls into gorge in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi
The death toll, police said, was likely to increase as rescue operations were still underway, adding that a search was on for two more passengers and the driver and conductor of the vehicle.
At least 22 people were killed and four were injured after a bus carrying 28 pilgrims from Madhya Pradesh to Yamunotri shrine fell into a 250-metre-deep gorge near Damta in Uttarkashi district on Sunday, police said.
The death toll is likely to increase as rescue operations are still underway. A search is on for two more passengers and the driver and conductor of the bus, they added.
The incident took place around 4 km away from Damta, along the Yamunotri National Highway, under the jurisdiction of Purola police station at around 7 pm. The impact of the fall was such that the vehicle broke into several pieces as it rolled into the gorge, police said.
The pilgrims belonged to Panna district of Madhya Pradesh.
The bus was part of nearly 30 pilgrim buses from Madhya Pradesh’s Panna district which had come for the ongoing Char Dham Yatra.
Shalini Negi, sub-divisional magistrate of Badkot in Uttarkashi said 22 passengers were killed while four were injured and rushed for treatment.
Uttarkashi additional district magistrate Tirath Pal Singh said of the four injured, two were sent to Dehradun while the remaining two were sent to Badkot for treatment.
Uttarkashi superintendent of police (SP) Arpan Yadhuvanshi said the toll is likely to increase.
“The bodies were scattered down the hill. The rescue operations will take time to be completed,’’ SP Yadhuvanshi said.
Bala Kateha, a resident of Mohendra village in Madhya Pradesh, said: “I lost my brother Menkaprasad in the accident. I don’t know what to do. My brother was very excited to go for Char Dham yatra. I was also supposed to go but couldn’t go due to some reason.”
Besides police, the state disaster response force (SDRF) rushed to the spot to assist with the operations.
SDRF spokesperson Lalita Negi said several teams from various locations were sent to the accident site.
Expressing grief over the incident, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia of ₹ 2 lakh each from Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for kin of each of the deceased and a compensation of ₹50,000 each for the injured, his office announced on Twitter.
Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Twitter said he has instructed the district administration to “ensure a speedy rescue operation and relief to the injured”.
Dhami also visited the disaster control room to oversee rescue operations and directed officials to conduct a probe into the accident.
Union home minister Amit Shah said he has spoken to the chief minister in this regard.
“The district administration and SDRF teams are engaged in the rescue operation. Those injured are being taken to a nearby hospital,’’ Shah said, adding that the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) was also on its way to the spot.
Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan tweeted that he is “leaving for Dehradun immediately”. “A team of senior officials including minister Brijendra Pratap Singh, DGP, home secretary is also going with me,” he said.
Sunday’s accident was the third since the Char Dham Yatra began on May 3. Five people were killed and 23 were injured in two separate accidents in Uttarkashi district.
