NEW DELHI, June 15: At least 14 people were killed and about a dozen others sustained injuries after a tempo traveller fell into a gorge bear Alaknanda river on the Rishikesh-Badrinath highway near Raitoli in the Rudraprayag district in Uttarakhand on Saturday, officials said.
The minibus was carrying 26 passengers and teams of the State Disaster Response Force and police are currently engaged in rescue operations, officials said. Among the injured in the accident also included some people standing on the roadsides as the vehicle hit them before plunging into the gorge.
Calling the incident “very sad news”, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the district magistrate has been ordered to investigate the accident. “I pray to God to grant the souls of the departed a place in his feet and provide strength to the bereaved family to bear this immense pain. I pray to Baba Kedar for the speedy recovery of the injured,” he posted in Hindi on X.
Injured people are being airlifted to AIIMS Rishikesh for treatment, officials said.
Garhwal Inspector General of Police KS Nagnyal stated that the victims were tourists heading to Chopta in Uttarakhand. He confirmed that the vehicle was carrying 26 passengers, mostly residents of Delhi.
The Prime Minister announced that an ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund would be given to the next of kin of each deceased, and Rs. 50,000 would be given to the injured. “An ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000: PM,” the Prime Minister’s office shared on X.
Union Home Minister also shared, “My condolences are with the families of those who lost their lives in this accident. The local administration and SDRF teams are engaged in relief and rescue work and all possible help is being provided to the injured. I pray to God for the speedy recovery of the injured.”
(Manas Dasgupta)
