3 killed as car falls in Alaknanda

DEHRADUN: A national bank manager and two others were killed when the car in which they were travelling fell into Alaknanda river from a height of over 200 metres near Ratuda, 29km from Pauri, on Thursday morning. Police said the three bodies have been fished out along with the car.
The incident occurred on Badrinath road when the victims, aged between 20 and 30, were on their way home from Ratuda to Rudraprayag district.“Prima facie it appears that the bank manager, who was driving the vehicle, lost control at a sharp bend on the road. The stretch of Badrinath road near Ratuda is quite narrow and the work to broaden the road was underway during the time of mishap,” station officer of Rudraprayag, Ram Kumar Juyal told TOI.
The deceased have been identified as bank manager Rahul Kumar, Amit Shah, also a bank employee and ITBP jawan Pankaj Kumar.
He said that the bodies have been sent to district hospital for post-mortem and will be handed over to their family members after examination. Chief minister Harish Rawat has expressed grief over the loss of lives.
Last week, four persons, including three Delhi policemen, were killed after the vehicle they were travelling in skidded off the road and fell into a 500-metre deep gorge near Tota ghati, about 24km before Devprayag, on Badrinath National Highway.