Eight killed, five injured as jeep falls into gorge in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh

Eight people were killed and five others injured when a jeep plunged into a deep gorge in Suni village in the Thal area of Pithoragarh district on Tuesday, officials said.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident and announced financial assistance to the families of the deceased.

The incident occurred when the vehicle, carrying passengers to Bokta village from Muwani market, lost control and fell into a gorge, Station House Officer of Thal police station Shankar Singh Rawat said.

He said the deceased include five women and three men, all local residents, and the driver is among those killed.

Upon receiving information, a police team and personnel from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) rushed to the spot and, with the help of local residents, launched a rescue and relief operation. The injured were pulled out of the gorge and admitted to a hospital in Muwani for treatment, officials said.

Pithoragarh District Disaster Management Officer Bhupendra Singh Maher said that all eight bodies were recovered. He said that prima facie, the cause of the accident appears to be driver negligence and overloading of the vehicle.

District Magistrate Vinod Goswami also said that the vehicle appeared to be carrying more passengers than its capacity.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami wrote on the social media platform 'X', "The condolences expressed by the Prime Minister on the Pithoragarh road accident and the financial assistance provided from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund will give strength to the bereaved family in this difficult time."    He added that the state government would also provide Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each to the injured.

"The state government stands firmly with the families of the deceased and is committed to providing all possible assistance to the injured," Dhami said.