Twenty pilgrims were killed while 40 others were injured when an overloaded mini-truck carrying them fell in a gorge in Manguwal village in the district early on Thursday.
“The pilgrims were returning from Chintpurni shrine in Himachal Pradesh and were headed to Begowal falling in Punjab’s Kapurthala district when the accident occurred,” Hoshiarpur SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill said over phone.
He said the truck was overloaded with pilgrims and the vehicle driver lost control resulting in the mishap along the Punjab-Himachal border.
The dead included 13 women and four children, Mr. Gill said.
The injured were rushed to nearby hospitals, he said, adding a case had been registered in connection with the incident.