17 killed, 16 hurt as minibus falls into gorge in Kishtwar

Ranjit Thakur

Doda, September 14

As many as 17 persons were killed and 16 injured when a minibus plunged into a deep gorge in Kishtwar district on Friday.

The accident occurred around 9:20 am when an overloaded minibus on way to Kishtwar skidded off the road and rolled down a deep gorge in Thakria, 20 km from the district headquarters.

“Sixteen people died on the spot in Kishtwar while one person succumbed in Government Medical College Hospital, Jammu. Two minor children, three women and 12 men were among the dead,” said Medical Superintendent of Kishtwar Hospital, Dr Sham Lal Sakolia.

Immediately after the accident, locals and personnel of the Army and police swung into action to carry out the massive rescue operation. They shifted the injured and the dead from the Chenab river to the hospital.

“It was a well-coordinated rescue operation by all agencies, but local youths from Keshwan played a crucial role. We managed to rescue the injured and retrieve bodies of all dead persons within one and a half hours from the gorge,” said SSP, Kishtwar, Rajinder Gupta.

“At 1 pm, three people were airlifted to Jammu by a Pawan Hans chopper followed by eight others in an Army helicopter. Legislators Sunil Sharma and GM Saroori were supervising the operation,” he added.

Assistant Regional Transport Officer, Kishtwar, Abay Sharma said, “The driver of the bus, Ashraf Hussain (29), was among the dead. The capacity of the minibus was 24 but it was carrying 33 passengers. The vehicle had been challaned by the traffic police just yesterday for overloading on the route. The road is also in a poor shape.”

The accident victims have been identified as Misra Begum, Umar, Kasim, Shaheena Begum, Ashraf Hussain, Nasir, Jabbar, Vikram, Nazir Ahmed, Mohammed Yousuf, Akhtar Hussain, Majeeda Begum, Tariq Hussain, Ghulam Mohiddin, Girdari Lal, Nazir Ahmed Sheikh and Kuldeep Singh.

Deputy Commissioner, Kishtwar, Angrez Singh said, “The next of kin of the deceased will be given ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh each, while Rs 50,000 will be given to each injured person.”

Rs 5-lakh ex gratia for kin of dead, Rs 50k for injured

Governor Satya Pal Malik has expressed grief over the loss of lives in the Kishtwar road accident on Friday. In his message, the Governor has prayed for eternal peace to the departed souls and strength to the bereaved families. He has wished speedy recovery to the injured. The Governor has announced Rs 5 lakh ex gratia each for the next of kin of the dead and Rs 50,000 each for the injured. He has directed for providing free-of-cost medical treatment to the injured in government hospitals