8 women among 21 killed, over 40 injured in Udhampur accident

Ramban, Apr 20: At least 21 persons, including eight women, were killed and over 40 others injured after an overcrowded passenger bus skidded off the road and rolled down a steep slope, hitting an auto-rickshaw before landing upside down on the road below, near Kaghote in Ramnagar tehsil of Udhampur district on Monday.

According to officials, the accident occurred at around 10 am when the driver lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a sharp curve.

“The bus veered off the road and rolled down a steep rocky slope. It landed on the lower road – turned turtle after hitting an auto rickshaw, resulting in massive damage. The impact was so severe that the roof of the bus was ripped apart, leaving the vehicle completely mangled,” officials said.

The passengers in the auto-rickshaw, which was hit by the bus, too suffered injuries.

Rescue operations were immediately launched by an Army patrolling party, which was passing along the hilly stretch. Army personnel were later joined by police, SDRF, local residents and other emergency responders.

The injured and deceased were evacuated to nearby healthcare facilities in CHC Ramnagar, including Government Medical College (GMC) Udhampur and Ramnagar Hospital.

Officials said that 17 passengers died on the spot, while four others succumbed to injuries later at hospitals, taking the death toll to 21.

Authorities at GMC Udhampur confirmed that 41 injured persons and four dead bodies were brought to the hospital.

Among the injured, two critically wounded patients were referred to Government Medical College, Jammu, while one was shifted to Military Hospital Udhampur for specialized treatment.

Thirty-eight injured persons are currently undergoing treatment at GMC Udhampur, health officials at GMC Udhampur said.

Earlier after providing medical aid at CHC Ramnagar some injured were discharged.

DIFFICULT RESCUE OPERATION

Rescue teams faced considerable difficulties in retrieving victims due to the severely damaged condition of the bus and the challenging terrain. According to officials, the passengers were mainly daily commuters, including women and students, travelling from Ramnagar to Udhampur.

“The rescue operations proved to be extremely challenging as the bus was reduced to a mangled heap of iron,” the officials said.

Senior officials, including Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Udhampur-Reasi range Shiv Kumar Sharma, supervised the rescue operation at the site.