Nine days after landslide, three Punjab residents found dead

Our Correspondent

Banihal (Ramban), Nov 14

Nine days after a landslide hit the Jammu-Srinagar national highway near here, three Punjab residents, who had gone missing during the incident, were found dead under the debris on Wednesday, the police said.

The three were travelling in an apple-laden truck which was buried in the massive landslide in the Battery Cheshma area of Ramban on November 5. However, the administration started a rescue operation three days after the incident.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Ramban, Anita Sharma said, “We came to know about the incident after the owner of the truck and a family from Punjab approached us and informed us about three missing persons. We then started the rescue operation in the area.”

“We took the help of the Army, SDRF, NDRF, police and local volunteers for the operation. Due to the tough terrain, we also used heavy machinery. Finally, we managed to retrieve the bodies from the debris on Wednesday,” she added.

The deceased were identified as driver Karaj Singh (26), conductor Joginder Lal (45) and his son Kashmiri Lal, alias Vicky (22). They all hailed from Nawan Pind Milkhi Wala in Gurdaspur district in Punjab, the police said.

The bodies have been shifted to the mortuary of District Hospital, Ramban, for postmortem examination. After legal formalities, the bodies would be handed over to the families for the last rites.