Two kids, 8 women among 22 dead as bus falls into Jammu gorge

JAMMU/AGRA: Twenty-two (22) people, including eight women and two children, died and 57 others were injured after a bus carrying pilgrims to Shiv Khori cave shrine in Reasi district of J&K plummeted into a deep gorge in Jammu on Thursday.
The bus had started from Hathras in UP and had reached Tanda area of Akhnoor in Jammu via Kurukshetra in Haryana, when it veered off the road while negotiating a turn, and rolled 150 feet down into the ravine at Tungi Morh near Chowki Chowra around 12.35 pm, officials said.
Police personnel and locals rushed to the spot and evacuated the injured to Akhnoor sub-district hospital. Later, Army also joined the rescue operation. The injured were later shifted to Govt Medical College and Hospital in Jammu, police said. Police are trying to ascertain the identities of the deceased.
Condoling the loss of lives in the “heart-rending” incident, LG Manoj Sinha announced ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each to the injured. PM Narendra Modi also announced Rs 2 lakh to the families of each of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured.
Officials in UP said most of the passengers on the ill-fated bus belonged to Hathras and Aligarh districts.