Jammu: At least 11 passengers died while 15 others were injured after the vehicle they were travelling in met with an accident at Sui Gwari on Thathri-Doda road on Thursday morning.
A minibus was on its way to Doda from Thathri when the driver lost control over the vehicle at Sui Gwari and fell into a deep gorge along river Chenab.
“11 passengers travelling in the vehicle died while 15 others are injured,” officials said, adding that the rescue operation was launched soon after the incident took place.
“The injured which were rescued during the operation were shifted to the hospital for treatment,” officials said, adding that seven injured persons who have received severe injuries were shifted to GMC Jammu by chopper.
Two out of 11 died in the hospital while nine others were declared brought dead at arrival, they said.
The deceased have been identified as Rajsesh Kumar (24) son of Budhi Singh of Purnot, Santosh Kumar, son of Som Nath (22) of Bhawna Kanthi Mohalla, Ghulam Hussain Shah (60) son of Maqbool Shah of Bharote Mohalla, Shabir Ahmad (30) son of Gh Hussain of Bharote Mohalla, Rhitik Sharma (19) son of Lekhi Raj of Jatheli, Jamal Din (23) son of Lal Din of Bakhana Mohalla, Mohd Latief (65) son of Mohd Ramzan of Bohrawa Mohalla, Anari Devi (55) wife of Lt Swami Raj of Sisol Barshalla Thatri, Bahadur Singh (65) son of Hari Singh of Shirdani Bhella, Kamal Singh (40) son of Dharam Singh of Paryote, Gori Devi (65) wife of Bid Lal of Tantana.
The injured who are undergoing treatment at GMC Doda have been identified as Sanjay, son of Santosh Kumar of Panaja, Naveed Akhter son of Thalela, Neetu Devi daughter of Lakshmn Singh of Korara, Vikram Singh son of Gulab Chand of Halwana, Ashok Sharma son of Vidya Lal of Mandrana, Mukesh Kumar son of Sugrev Sharma of Kareli Mohalla, Arif Hussain son of Mohd Musa of Kahra and Saveeta Devi wife of Ramesh Kumar of Dhal Mohalla.
Reports reaching Srinagar said that seven injured have been shifted to GMC Jammu by chopper, who have been identified as Babar Hussain son of Alla Datta of Thalela, Rohit son of Sugrev Sharma of Malwana, Santosha Devi wife of Gurdev Singh of Premnagar, Poonam Devi daughter of Balwant Singh of Premnagar, Ramesh Kumar son of Hem Raj of Thathri, Monika Devi daughter of Bansal Lal of Panthan Premnagar and Parvex Ahmad son of Khurshid Ahmad of Arif Mohalla Thathri.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolence and announced ex-gratia to the next of kin of the deceased and injured persons.
The Prime Minister’s Office tweeted: “Saddened by the road accident near Thatri, Doda in Jammu and Kashmir. In this hour of grief, I convey my condolences to the bereaved families. I pray that the people who have been injured recover at the earliest. An ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of those who have lost their lives due to the accident in Jammu and Kashmir. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000.”
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha also expressed condolence “Deeply anguished to hear about the tragic road accident in Doda. My thoughts and prayers for the families who have lost their loved ones. Have directed the district administration to provide immediate relief to families of the deceased and best medical assistance to the injured.”
Advisor to Lieutenant Governor, Farooq Khan also expressed grief and shock over the tragic death of eight persons during an unfortunate road mishap in Doda district.The accident occurred when a minibus rolled down into a gorge injuring several passengers and causing death of eight persons.In his condolence message, Advisor Khan conveyed his deep condolences to the bereaved families and prayed for early recovery of the injured passengers.Advisor assured all possible assistance to the injured and bereaved families by the district and divisional administration.
Several political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir including National President Farroq Abdullah and Party’s Vice President Omar Abdullah,Senior Congress leaders and former Chief Minister of erstwhile J&K State Gh Nabi Azad, PDF Chairman Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen and CPI (M) Secretary M Y Tarigami also expressed grief over the loss of lives and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured persons.
In a statement, issued on Thursday senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Gh Nabi Azad demanded adequate compensation to the family members of those deceased and proper medical attention to those who are injured. “Time and again I am impelled to talk about the traffic mismanagement on this particular road. It has claimed many precious lives. I am sure J&K authorities will press all the available resources into action and take immediate remedial measures. My heart goes out for those who lost their loved ones. Injured should be given immediate medical attention,” he said. While expressing solidarity with the bereaved, he demanded ex-gratia relief for the victim families and free of cost treatment to those injured in the accident.
Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Front (J&K PDF) and former Minister Hakeem Mohammed Yaseen on Thursday expressed his deep shock and grief over the deaths of eight persons in a bus accident in Thathri area of Doda district. In a statement issued on Thursday Hakeem expressed his heartfelt condolences with the families of those killed in the deadly road accident. Reminding government that precious lives are lost in the road accidents frequently in Chenab Valley area of Jammu division the PDF Chairman demand immediate upgradation of rough roads in the area to prevent deaths of people in roads accidents in future. Welcoming the announcement of ex-gratia relief of Rs 2laks to the kins of each one of the deceased Hakeem demanded enhancement of ex-gratia to Rs 5 lakhs to each one of the kins of the deceased and free specialized medical treatm CPI (M) leader Mohamad Yousuf Tarigami has expressed deep shock and grief over the fatal road accident in Thathri area of Doda district in which 8 persons died and
several others were injured.
