Eight people were killed and 10 others injured after a private bus overturned and fell onto a lower road in Himachal Pradesh's Chamba district on Saturday morning according to the Chamba District Disaster Management Authority cited by NDTV.
The accident took place near Chalunj Mor in the Devikothi area on the Bairagarh-Tissa road.
According to officials, the bus was operated by Sharma Bus Service and was travelling from Bairagarh to Chamba. Officials said the vehicle had left Bairagarh around 6:30 am and met with the accident after covering nearly three kilometres. The vehicle was carrying 18 people.
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The deceased also reportedly included the bus driver and the conductor, as reported by NDTV. The identities of those killed have not been officially released at the time of reporting.
Six of the 10 injured people suffered serious injuries and were referred to Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru Government Medical College and Hospital in Chamba.
According to officials, cited by NDTV, the bus overturned and plunged onto a road below, with some passengers becoming trapped underneath the wreckage. Local residents allegedly heard cries for help, rushed to the accident site and alerted the authorities.
Rescue operations involved personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the police, Home Guards, Fire Services and Revenue Department. Rescue teams worked to extricate passengers from the damaged bus and transport the injured to medical facilities.
The accident occurred on the Bairagarh-Tissa road, a mountainous route in Chamba's remote Churah Valley.
According to NDTV, the 27-km route winds through steep mountain terrain with narrow roads and is a key link to Sach Pass.
The exact cause of the accident has not yet been established. Authorities have launched an investigation to determine what caused the bus to overturn and fall onto the lower road.
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