Himachal accident: 10 bodies yet to be identified

Ten of the 45 passengers who were killed when a private bus fell into a Himachal Pradesh river are yet to be identified even after 24 hours of the accident, an official said on Thursday.

Two people, including the conductor, managed to escape by jumping off the bus belonging to Uttarakhand as it skidded off the road and fell into the Tons river, a tributary of the Yamuna, more than 250 metres below the road.

The accident spot, 12 km from the Uttarakhand border, is near Gumma in Nerva tehsil, some 190 km from the state capital. It is one of the remotest places in the state.

Sub-divisional Magistrate Anil Chauhan said 10 bodies, which are in badly mutilated condition, are yet to be identified.

"All the bodies have been sent to the government hospital in Nerva," he told IANS.

Nerva is some 30 km from the accident spot.

Out of the 45 victims, 13 belonged to Himachal Pradesh, 18 from Uttarakhand and four from Uttar Pradesh.

The bus was on its way to Tuini from Vikasnagar town (both in Uttarakhand), via Himachal Pradesh.

Rescue workers said the road where the accident occurred was badly damaged and there was no parapet to prevent the vehicle from rolling down.

Himachal Pradesh Transport Minister G.S. Bali has ordered a probe to ascertain the cause of the accident.

--IANS

vg/ksk/vm