14 killed in two road accidents in Himachal Pradesh

SHIMLA: Fourteen people were killed in two separate accidents in Himachal Pradesh’s Sirmaur and Shimla districts officials said on Sunday.

Seven people were killed and 12 injured when a private bus, which was on its way from Manva to Solan town with 20 passengers on board, fell into a gorge near the Naeneti panchayat, around 25 km from Rajgarh town in Sirmaur district.

“The injured were taken to the civil hospital in Solan. The district administration has disbursed relief to the families of the injured and the deceased,” deputy commissioner Lalit Jain said. “As of now, it looks like a technical failure in the bus that led to the mishap, but probe is on,” Sirmaur superintendent of police (SP) Rohit Maalpani said.

Sub-divisional magistrate Rajgrah Naresh Verma said they have distributed immediate relief of ₹15,000 to the kin of deceased, ₹10,000 to the critically injured and ₹5,000 to those who sustained minor injuries.

In the other accident, all six occupants of a car were killed on the spot when it fell into a deep gorge near Chhaila on the TheogHatkoti road, 42 km from Shimla.

The mishap took place at Kholgali, 2-3km ahead of Chaila. The car rolled 300-feet down the hill.

The police carried out the rescue operation with the help of locals.

All the deceased, who were members of a family, were on their way to Kyar in Kotkhai.

Their bodies were brought to Shimla but so far, the police has not been able to establish their identity. The driver of the vehicle lost control and as result of which the speeding car fell in the gorge, said Shimla superintendent of police (SP) Omapati Jamwal.

Governor Acharya Devvrat and chief minister Jai Ram Thakur expressed deep grief over both the accidents.

Thakur also directed district administration to provide all possible help to the families of the deceased and best treatment to those injured in this accident.