At least 32 people were killed and 28 others severely injured when an overloaded bus fell into a deep drain in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh on Thursday, officials said.
The private bus (bearing registration number HP 66-7065)fell into the over 300-metre-deep nullah near the Dhoth Morh in Banjar tehsilof the district, Kullu Superintendent of Police Shalini Agnihotri said, addingthat the vehicle was en route to Gada Gushaini.
Prima facie, it seems that overloading and negligent drivingmay have caused the accident, Banjar Patwari Sheetal Kumar said.
Officials said the death toll in the tragic accident hastouched 32, and added that the injured were undergoing treatment at the BanjarCivil Hospital and the Kullu district hospital. Most of the victims wereresidents of various areas in Kullu district.
Himachal Pradesh Governor Acharya Devvrat and Chief MinisterJai Ram Thakur expressed grief over the tragic accident. In their condolencemessages, they prayed for peace to the departed souls and strength to thebereaved family members, an official spokesperson said.
The chief minister has ordered a magisterial inquiry intothe incident, the official said, adding that Thakur also asked theadministration to provide best possible medicare to the injured passengers.
Meanwhile, state Transport Minister Govind Singh Thakur leftfor Kullu from Shimla after learning about the accident.
The Kullu district administration announced an immediaterelief of Rs 50,000 to the kin of each of the deceased and the injured.
Talking to PTI, Piyush Tewari, founder of SaveLIFE Foundationsaid, “It’s a shame that mass-casualty bus crashes have become a norm inIndia, especially in hilly states like Himachal Pradesh.””The state government must immediatelyorder a summary audit of all roads, and engineers and contractors responsiblefor missing basic installations like crash barriers must be booked for causingcountless deaths and injuries,” he said.