At least 37 passengers were killed and 19 others were injured when a private bus skidded off the road and rolled down into a 300-foot gorge in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district on Wednesday.
According to a police spokesman the ill-fated bus bearing registration No. JK02CN6555 met with an accident at around 11:50 a.m. at Trungal Assar in Doda. The rescue operations were carried out by the locals along with the teams of the SDRF and local police.
Several close relatives of the deceased passengers also arrived at the accident site to identify their loved ones.
The bus was on its way from Kishtwar to Jammu. Over 50 passengers were traveling on board at the time of the accident.
Out of 19, four critically injured passengers including two children were airlifted to Jammu Medical College Hospital.
Government Medical College hospital Superintendent Narinder Bhatial said, four injured passengers were shifted to ICU soon after their arrival via chopper from the Doda district.
Deputy Commissioner Doda, Harvinder Singh told reporters in Doda, that a very sad incident has happened in our district. A bus in which 56 people were traveling met with an accident. There have been 37 casualties till now, and 19 are injured... Most of the bodies have been identified... We have checked all the things about the vehicle, its insurance, and service life. The driver is also dead, so there might be a chance that the vehicle was not being driven properly.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah expressed grief over the incident.
“The bus accident in Doda, Jammu and Kashmir is distressing. My condolences to the families who have lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest,” Modi said on X.
He announced that an ex-gratia amount of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each would be given to the injured.
“Deeply anguished to learn about the loss of precious lives due to a tragic bus accident at Doda, Jammu and Kashmir. The local administration is conducting the rescue operation in the gorge where the bus had the accident. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased and prayers for the speedy recovery of the injured,” Shah said on X.
“Extremely pained by the loss of lives in a tragic bus accident in Assar, Doda. My heartfelt condolences to bereaved families and wish for a speedy recovery of those injured in the accident. Directed Divisional Commissioner and District Administration to provide all necessary assistance to affected persons,” Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said on the microblogging website.
