8 killed, 18 of wedding party hurt in Chamba accident

SHIMLA: Wedding celebrations turned into mourning for several families on Tuesday when eight persons were killed and 18 injured in an accident near Batarwah of Chamba district. Accident occurred late Monday night but people came to know about it in the early morning only.
An overcrowded pickup vehicle, carrying 26 to 28 people, rolled into a deep gorge on Lachordi-Talka road in Salooni subdivision of the district.All the occupants of the private vehicle had come to attend the marriage of their relative and were returning with the "baarat" (marriage procession). Marriage procession was on its way to Batarwah when the accident took place.
Sources said that when the vehicle reached near Talka, driver lost control and the vehicle fell into 250-feet-deep gorge resulting into on the spot death of eight people. Condition of four of those injured is said to be serious. They have been referred to Dr RPGMC at Tanda in Kangra district while others were admitted at Government Hospital at Chamba.
After coming to know about the accident local people started gathering at the spot and a rescue operation was launched with the help of police and district administration. Police are investigating the exact reasons behind the accident.
A senior official from Chamba police said that prima facie it appears that accident occurred due to the negligence of the vehicle driver. He said that based on the complaint received from Amar Singh, a resident of Gadlai village, a case has been registered against driver Vijay Kumar, a resident of Athed village.
"Accident occurred around 2.30 am when the vehicle rolled off the steep hill," the official added.
Those killed have been identified as Aman Kumar (18), Kuldeep Kumar (19) of Tikkar village, Dinesh Kumar (27), Vipan Kumar (31), Sandeep Kumar (16) of Gadlai village, Shishupal (18), Subhash Kumar (30) of Dhar village and Surjit Singh (17) of Didori village.
Governor Kalyan Singh and chief minister Virbhadra Singh have expressed grief over the tragic deaths. The CM announced a sum of Rs 10,000 each as immediate relief to the next of the kin of deceased and Rs 5,000 each to the injured.