Nine persons were killed in an accident on Sunday in Afti village in Marwah tehsil when the light commercial vehicle of the Marwah roads and buildings division, in which they were travelling to Marwah in Kishtwar rolled down into a 600-hundred feet deep gorge due to heavy snowfall.
Four bodies have been recovered and the deceased have been identified as Shabir Ahmed of Dacham, Mangat Ram of Himachal Pradesh and Tanvir Ahmed of Marwah, and one Riaz Ahnad Wani, whose residence is yet to be ascertained. Five persons, all reported dead, are still missing. It has been very difficult to carry on the search operation as heavy snowfall continues in the area.
The bodies yet to be found are of Ashiq Hussain, Mudasir Ahmed, Mohammed Yousuf, Sohail Ahmed, and Mushtaq Ahmed. Mohammed Muzzaffar and Farooq Ahmed of Navapachi Marwah were injured critically and have been shifted to nearby hospital for treatment. MLA Kishtwar and recently re-inducted minister Sajjad Ahmed Kilcloo and Ex-MLC Mohammed Iqbal Batt Bhalesvi condoled the deaths and expressed heartfelt sympathies with the affected families.