14 killed, 28 injured as bus rolls down the hill in HP

Solan, Dec 2 (UNI) Fourteen persons were killed and 28 others injured, three of them seriously, at Jokhri, 10-km from here, in Himachal Pradesh when a state-run bus rolled about 200 metre down the hill on the Kalka-Shimla national highway this afternoon.

The Himachal Road Transport Corporation bus, carrying 50 persons, was on its way from Shimla to Delhi when the accident took place, Additional Superintendent of Police Virender Kanwar said.

Eleven persons, including the driver and conductor, died on the spot, one died on way to hospital while two succumbed to their injuries in the hospital. Seven of the victims were women.

All the bodies were recovered and the injured had been admitted to various hospitals. While 19 injured persons were rushed to a hospital here, ten were admitted in a hospital at Kandaghat and two seriously hurt were sent to Indira Gandhi Medical College Hospital at Shimla. Later, all the persons brought to Kandaghat hospital were also shifted here.

State Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, on his way here, stopped at the spot and directed the district administration to provide all possible help to the victims.

Senior district and police officers rushed to the spot alongwith rescue teams and conducted the rescue operations.

The bus had broken apart after falling down 200 metre and its parts had scattered around.

People from surrounding areas rushed to the spot and helped in rescue operations. The bodies had been brought here and will be handed over to family members after post mortem, police sources said.

According to police, the bus driver lost control after it was hit by another vehicle. A Magisterial enquiry has been ordered.

The Chief Minister expressed deep shock over the accident and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved families. Later he also visited the injured persons in the hospital here.

He also directed the district administration to provide relief to the next of kin of the deceased and injured persons and inform the relatives.

Local BJP MLA Dr Rajiv Bindal also visited the injured persons in the hospital and expressed his condolences.

Of the 14 victims, only ten have been identified. They are --Nand Lal, Bimla Devi, Sanjay Butail, Geeta Ram, Mahinder Pal (Army Personnel, Jabalpur), Rakesh Kumar Gupta, Chanderprbha Gupta, Sandeep (J P University), Aman (J P University) and Darshan Singh (Chandigarh).

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