14 dead as overloaded bus plunges into gorge in Himachal
Overloaded bus had more than 65 passengers; Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured.
Injured being treated at temporary established medical facility at Nauradhar around 10 km away from the accident site. (Express Photo) The toll in the bus accident in Himachal’s Sirmaur climbed to 14 as two passengers died during treatment at a hospital, officials Friday said, adding another nine seriously injured passengers have been referred to Solan.
The accident occurred when an overlaoded private bus, carrying more than 65 passengers and on way from Solan to Kupvi via Rajgarh, veered off the road, and plunged into a 500-feet deep gorge before landing upside down near Haripurdhar village. Besides 14 passengers, including four women and a child, who died, another 52 sustained injuries, as per the list released by the administration.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured. “The loss of lives due to a bus mishap…is extremely saddening. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. Praying for the speedy recovery of those injured. An ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs 50,000: PM,” the PMO said in a post on X.
President Droupadi Murmu too mourned the deaths, expressing “deepest condolences to the bereaved families” and praying for the swift recovery of the injured individuals.
In a statement, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed deepest condolences and directed the district authorities to provide all possible assistance to the next of kin of those killed in the accident and ensure the best medical care to the injured.
BJP national president and Union health Minister J P Nadda, Leader of the Opposition in Himachal Assembly Jai Ram Thakur and state BJP chief Rajiv Bindal, Shimla BJP MP Suresh Kashyap, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, and Congress state president Vinay Kumar too expressed grief on the tragedy.
Nadda spoke Thakur and Bindal over the phone and took stock of the relief and rescue operations, and the medical treatment being provided to the injured.
Industry Minister and Shillai MLA Harshwardhan Chauhan, said the district administration has been put on alert, and medical teams and doctors at Dadahu, Sangrah and Nahan hospitals are prepared to treat the injured.
He said the cause of the accident is yet to be ascertained and expressed condolences on the incident.
While locals said that driver may have lost have lost control of the vehicle, following which it skidded off the road due to frost accumulation.
Sirmaur SP Nishchint Singh Negi confirmed that the deceased included four women, a girl child and the bus driver. “Efforts are on to identify all the deceased and the injured passengers,” the SP said, adding all the passengers have been taken out from the gorge and shifted to hospitals in Solan, Nahan, Paonta Sahib, and Shimla.
Sirmaur Deputy Commissioner Priyanka Verma earlier said that some of the seriously injured passengers have been referred to medical college at Nahan.
Joginder Singh Chauhan, Secretary, Churdhar Seva Samiti, Nauradhar, said, “The accident took place around 3 pm”. Locals who were first to reach the spot and helped rescue the passengers, said that driver bus might have skidded off the road due to frost accumulation.
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