Uttarakhand: 5 dead, 18 injured after bus falls into gorge in Pauri

Five people were killed and 18 others injured after the bus they were traveling in fell into a gorge near Dehalchauri in Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand, police said.

The accident occurred around 4 p.m. when the bus was traveling from Pauri to Srinagar. He left the Pauri bus stand around 3 p.m. and fell into a gorge near Kothar Complex.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Pauri Garhwal Lokeshwar Singh said that of the 18 injured, five were taken to Srinagar and 13 others were sent to Pauri district hospital.

Singh said the cause of the accident is yet to be ascertained.

Meanwhile, District Magistrate Ashish Chauhan directed transport department officials to investigate the causes of the accident.

The administration has not yet revealed the identity of the deceased and the victims.

Prime Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami expressed his condolences.

“We received the sad news of the death of passengers in a bus accident in Pauri. I pray to God to give the souls of the departed a place at His feet and give strength to the bereaved family to bear this pain,” Dhami said.

He said the local administration was carrying out rescue operations and the injured were being treated at the nearest hospital. “I pray to Baba Kedar for the speedy recovery of the injured,” he added.

In another accident, one person was killed and three others injured after the car she was traveling in fell into a 200-meter-deep gorge at Jeolikote in Nainital district on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday.

After receiving a report under the emergency number 112, a police team arrived at the scene and carried out a rescue operation. All the injured were taken to BD Pandey Government Hospital in Nainital, where doctors declared that one person had “brought death”.

The deceased was identified as Mojum Khan (26), a resident of Bareilly.

The police sent the body for post-mortem and informed the relatives about the incident.

Ramesh Singh Vohra, officer-in-charge of Tallital police station, said, “A person died and three others were injured after his car with registration number UP 25 DD 4750 fell into a gorge in Jeolikote on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday at around 12 p.m. : 30 am. After the autopsy, the body of the deceased was handed over to his family members.”