29, June 29 – Manali: A major incident occurred in the Sirmaur district where a jeep inadvertently fell into a 300 feet deep gorge on Timbi-Bakras road in the Shillai subdivision, thereby killing 10 people, including a 12-year old, and injuring 2 on Monday evening.
There were a total of 12 people in the jeep, between 12 and 38 years of age who were returning from Chadeau after attending a marriage procession when it plunged into a gorge on a sharp turn near Koti Utrou, 1km from Timbi.
On receiving the news of the accident, the locals rushed to the spot but were too late to save the passengers. The police too reached the spot on hearing about the accident and managed to retrieve the corpses before sending them for post-mortem. 9 people died on the spot whereas 3 were immediately transferred to Civil Hospital where one later succumbed to injuries.
Veer Bahadur, DSP – Paonta Sahib said, “Preliminary investigation shows that the driver lost control of the vehicle near Pashog, went off-road, and fell into the gorge due to speeding. The victims were residents of the local villages of Kando Bhatnol and Chareyu in Shillai.
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has expressed grief over the incident, expressing his condolences, and has instructed the district administration to extend all possible help to the affected families and provide better treatment facilities to the injured. A compensation of 4lakh each has also been announced to the kin of the deceased.