Nainital, 25 December
A bus fell into a 1500-feet deep gorge today in Saldi area of Bhimtal in Nainital district of Uttarakhand. Meanwhile, four passengers, including a child, were killed and 23 others were injured in the bus. An official said here that a woman is also included in the dead of the accident. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has expressed grief over the accident. They have directed the authorities to give an assistance amount of Rs 10 lakh each to the family members of the deceased.
Kumaon Commissioner Deepak Rawat said while talking to the media here that a total of 27 passengers including the driver and conductor were on board the Uttarakhand Transport Corporation bus coming from Pithoragarh, out of which four have been confirmed dead. He said that the injured were taken to Sushila Tiwari Hospital in Haldwani through ambulances.
An official said that the deceased have been identified as Kharak Singh (55), his wife Ganga Dhami (48), Surinder Singh Dharamsattu (58) and Daksh Pant (6). He said that the deceased were residents of Dharchula, Pithoragarh and Berinag respectively. Rawat said that the local people came to know about the incident first and they also got information about it from the local people. He said that most of the injured are in the general ward but some of them can be shifted to the ICU.
On getting information about the accident, police, state disaster relief force, fire brigade and administration teams reached the spot and started relief and rescue operations with the help of local people. As the bus fell into a 1500-feet deep gorge, rescue operations became difficult and the injured had to be carried up from the gorge with the help of ropes. –News-Patiala