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Bus with 39 ITBP men, cops falls in J&K gorge
The bus, with 37 ITBP personnel and two cops from the J&K Police, fell into a 60-metre-deep gorge, possibly due to a failure in the vehicle’s brakes, district officials said.
At least seven troopers of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) were killed and 32 people injured — some of them critically — when a bus ferrying ITBP and Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel fell into a deep gorge in Anantnag district on Tuesday, officials said.
Those injured were taken for treatment to hospitals in Srinagar and Anantnag , police said, after teams were deployed at the site of the accident to carry out rescue operations .
There were 39 personnel in the Srinagar-bound bus — 37 from ITBP and two from the J&K Police — when the bus fell into the 60-metre-deep gorge, possibly due to a failure in the vehicle’s brakes near Chandanwari in Pahalgam area of the district, officials said. The troops were returning from their deputation at the Amarnath shrine, they added.
While two ITBP jawans died on the spot, five others succumbed to their injuries later, officials said
ITBP officials said the exact cause of the accident will be ascertained after a detailed investigation.
Photographs of the site showed the bus to have been reduced to a heap of metal, and health officials said that more than 19 ambulances were involved in the rescue operation.
“Special teams were dispatched to the accident spot from Pahalgam and Anantnag to help the injured personnel. Many injured personnel were shifted to Srinagar after receiving basic treatment,” said a senior health officer, asking not to be named.
President Droupadi Murmu took to Twitter to condole the deaths. “The tragic loss of precious lives of ITBP personnel in the unfortunate accident at Anantnag, J&K fills me with sadness. My heartfelt condolences for the bereaved families. I pray for speedy recovery of the injured,” she wrote.
J&K lieutenant governor (LG) Manoj Sinha and Union home minister Amit Shah also expressed anguish over the accident.
“Deeply anguished by the bus accident near Chandanwari in which we have lost our brave ITBP personnel. My condolences to bereaved families & prayers for the speedy recovery of the injured. All possible assistance is being provided to the injured personnel,” the LG tweeted. He later visited the army hospital in Srinagar and met the injured ITBP personnel.
“Anguished to learn about the accident of a bus carrying ITBP and police personnel in Pahalgam, J&K. My prayers and thoughts are with the bereaved families. The injured were rushed to the hospital. May they recover at the earliest,” tweeted Shah.
Former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah also tweeted his condolences. “I send my condolences to the families & colleagues of the brave ITBP jawans killed in an accident in Pahalgam today. A number of ITBP personnel have been injured. I send my best wishes for their speedy & complete recovery,” he wrote.
“I’m deeply saddened by the tragic accident in J&K where 7 ITBP personnel lost lives. My heartfelt condolences to the family of the Bereaved. I stand with them in this hour of grief. We are taking care of the injured & wish for their speedy recovery,” the ITBP director general tweeted.
