Twenty-four people were killed and around 49 injured, five of them critically, when an overcrowded passenger bus fell into a gorge in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.
According to officials, the driver of the bus lost control while negotiating a bend. The driver too was killed in the accident.
Udhampur Deputy Commissioner Yasha Mudgal said the 54-seater vehicle was carrying around 74 people from the Latti belt to Udhampur district in Jammu when it skidded off the road.
“It is a remote area and buses do not commute frequently and so the bus was crowded beyond its capacity when the accident happened,” a senior official said.
Six critically injured passengers were airlifted to the Government Medical College hospital in Jammu where one of them died.
Ms. Mudgal told The Hindu that the administration had given an immediate relief of Rs. 10,000 to the families of the deceased and Rs. 5,000 to the injured.
“It is just an attempt to provide immediate relief out of our Red Cross Fund as this is a major tragedy. This is not ex gratia relief which the government will provide later,” she said.
PTI adds: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed expressed deep shock and grief over the accident.
In a condolence message, Mr. Sayeed conveyed sympathies to the bereaved families and prayed for eternal peace to the departed souls, an official spokesman said.
The Chief Minister directed the Jammu Divisional Commissioner to ensure that best possible medical treatment is extended to the injured, the spokesman said.
