45 dead as bus falls into gorge

Lalita Thakur, a survivor from Gullo village in Theog tehsil, who was sitting on front seat of the bus, said the driver was trying to change the CD on the music player when the bus went out of control. 8220;He could not negotiate the curve though the road was very wide. Watching the bus go out of the road the passengers yelled, but by then the front tyres had gone off the road,8221; she said. Lalita, who was thrown out through the broken windscreen, clung on to bushes on the cliff till help arrived.

Another survivor, 35-year-old Anita, who had boarded the bus from just a kilometre before the accident, corroborated Lalita8217;s version. Her sister Draupdi Thakur died on the spot while her husband survived with minor injuries.

Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal visited the accident spot and also met the injured at the IGMC Hospital. He said a magisterial inquiry would be conducted to find out the actual cause of the accident. The Government has announced an immediate relief of Rs 50,000 and an equal amount to be given later to the families of the dead. The injured would be given Rs 50,000.