3 Sabarimala pilgrims die, around 50 injured in road accident

Three Ayyappa devotees from Karnataka on their way to Sabarimala from Bangalore died when the bus they were travelling in overturned at Kottur in Kasaragod on Tuesday.

Nearly 50 other passengers in the bus including children were injured in the mishap that occurred in the early hours of Tuesday. The deceased have been identified as Nanjundappa (65), Ganapathy (72) and

Mahadeva (40), all from Bangalore.

The accident occurred when the private bus carrying nearly 60 Ayyappa devotees from Bangalore lost control and overturned before hitting a mud hedge on the roadside. The passengers who were trapped

inside the overturned bus were brought out by local people and passengers of other vehicles.

The bodies of the deceased have been kept at the mortuary of the Government General Hospital in Kasaragod. The bus driver Narasimha Moorthy (35) and passengers Muniyappa (50) and Alakeri (49), who

suffered serious injuries in the accident have been admitted to a hospital in Mangalore. The others are being treated in various hospitals in Kasaragod.