12 killed in Himachal road accidents

Twelve people were killed in Himachal Pradesh in two major road accidents on Monday, police said.

Six people were killed when their vehicle was caught in a landslide in Shimla district, while another six were killed when a private vehicle skidded off the road and fell into a gorge in Mandi district.

The massive landslide on the Rampur-Nirmand road near Rampur town, 120 km from here, caused a Maruti car to roll down a gorge, killing six people.

The incident came to light on Monday morning when passersby saw the car wreckage and found the bodies trapped under rocks. All bodies, including that of a child, were recovered.

In the second accident, six people died and another eight were injured when a tempo they were travelling in from Mandi to Chandigarh rolled down a gorge near Sundernagar town.

Superintendent of Police Ashok Kumar told reporters that the victims were returning to Ambala after attending a marriage in Nerchowk town in the district.

The injured were admitted to the Civil Hospital in Sundernagar. The cause of the accident was negligent driving, he added.

--IANS

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