At least nine passengers were killed while 38 injured, some of them critically, when a bus skidded off the road and rolled into a deep gorge in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district on Thursday.
“The bus was on its way from Surankote to Jammu when the accident happened near Lambari,” said Rajouri deputy commissioner Mohd Nazir Sheikh.
What caused the mishap is yet to be ascertained but prima facie, it appears to be a case of rash driving, he said.
As per one of the injured, the driver was busy talking on the phone when a biker appeared in front of the bus from the opposite direction. To avoid collision, the driver took a sharp turn. As the bus was moving at a high speed, the driver lost control over the vehicle following which, it plunged into the gorge, he added.
“Locals rushed the injured to Nowshera and Sunderbani government hospitals from where around 25 critically injured were referred to Jammu government medical college & hospital,” said the DC, adding that two passengers succumbed to their injuries enroute to Jammu.
The deceased were identified as Abdul Ghani, Saqib, Wahid Din Shah and Amkala, all residents of Poonch, and Manzoor Hussian, who hailed from Surnakote. The identity of the other four deceased is being ascertained.
{{/usCountry}}The deceased were identified as Abdul Ghani, Saqib, Wahid Din Shah and Amkala, all residents of Poonch, and Manzoor Hussian, who hailed from Surnakote. The identity of the other four deceased is being ascertained.
{{/usCountry}}J&K BJP chief Ravinder Raina, while condoling the loss of lives in the mishap, demanded a compensation of ~10 lakh for the family of the dead and ~ 5 lakh to the injured.
Kashmir is currently in the grip of ‘Chillai-Kalan’ - the 40-day harshest period of winter when the chances of snowfall are most frequent and maximum and the temperature drops considerably, leading to landslides and low visibility that makes roads more prone to accidents.