Doda, Jan 16: At least nine persons were killed and 13 others sustained injuries, some of them critically, when a matador skidded off the road and plunged into a rivulet in Bhaderwah area of this mountainous district on Wednesday.
Police said the ill-fated matador was on way from Doda to Bhaderwah, when it met with the tragic accident near Bhalla area of tehsil Bhaderwah at around about 3.00 PM.
Soon after receiving the information police contingent rushed to spot and started rescue operation with the help of the local residents and volunteers. Five passengers were declared dead on the spot, while the injured were shifted to district hospital Doda, where four more critically injured passengers succumbed.
The deceased have been identified as Kiran Deep (45) son of Kishori Lal resident of Bhaderwah, Pushpa Devi (55) wife of Krishan Lal resident of Dugli Bhaderwah, Rinku Devi daughter of Dev Raj resident of Bhaderwah, Sajad Ali son of Sadiq  Ali resident of Jharkhand, Asma Begum (24) wife of Nazir Hussain resident of Sanai Khelani,
Nissar Ahmed son of Abdul Rashid resident of Malnai Bhaderwah, Shahid Hussain son of Anayatullah resident of Malnai Bhaderwah, Om Raj son of Jagat Ram resident of Gudsa Bhaderwah and Janki son of Budhi Ram resident of Malothi Bhaderwah.
The injured have been identified as Swarna Devi wife of Rajesh Kumar resident of Bhalla, Laxmi Devi daughter of Rajesh Kumar  resident of Bhalla, Abra Hamid daughter of Abdul Hamid resident of Killa Mohalla Bhaderwah, Alia Begum wife of Riyaz Ahmad resident of Chinote Bhaderwah, Nissar Ahmed son of Suno Bhat resident of Bhaderwah,  Asiya Hamid wife of Talib Hussain resident of Sarsi, Irshad Hussain son of Ghulam Qadir resident of Khellani Bhaderwah, Sansar Chand son of Janki Nath resident of Maloti, Rohit Sharma son of Krishan Chand resident of Bhaderwah, Krishan Lal Kotwal son of Gori Lal  resident of Bhaderwah, Mool Raj son of Malyan Chand resident of Bhaderwah, Rutba Tabasum (2) daughter of Riyaz Ahmed resident of Chintoe Bhaderwah  and Jigar (3) son of Talib Hussain resident of Sarsi.
This is the second such fatal mishap in the area in less than a month. Earlier, last month around eight persons were killed in a similar road mishap.
Meanwhile, Governor NN Vohra and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah have expressed grief over the loss of lives and extended condolence to the bereaved families.
Minister for PWD (R&B) Abdul Majid Wani, Minister of State for Industries and Commerce Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo and former minister and MLA Bhaderwah Muhammad Sharief Niaz have also expressed grief and sorrow over the loss of human lives in the mishap.
PDP patron Mufti Muhammed Sayeed and the party president Mehbooba Mufti have also expressed grief over the loss of precious lives in the tragic road.
PDP leaders conveyed their sympathies to the bereaved families and prayed for the speedy recovery of injured.

Lastupdate on : Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Wed, 16 Jan 2013 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Thu, 17 Jan 2013 00:00:00 IST