Eight Indians asphyxiated at Nepal mountain resort

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 21

Eight Indians, including four minors, from two families died of suspected asphyxiation due to gas leak from their room heater at a mountain resort in Nepal on Tuesday.

The Indians, all from Kerala, were airlifted to a hospital in Kathmandu where they were declared dead on arrival, according to media reports.

Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar, who is currently in Africa, said the Indian embassy in Nepal was closely following the situation with officials stationed at the hospital to provide the necessary assistance.

“Deeply distressed by the tragic news of the passing away of eight Indian tourists in Nepal. Our thoughts are with the bereaved families,” he said in a tweet.

The victims were identified as Praveen Krishnan Nair, Saranya Sasi, Sreebhadra Praveen, Aarcha Praveen, Abhinav Saranya Nair, Ranjith Kumar Adatholath Punathil, Indu Lakshmi Peethambaran Ragalatha and Vyshnav Ranjith.

The two families were part of a group of 15 persons who had travelled from Kerala to Pokhara in Nepal and had stayed at a resort on their way back.

Al those who died were staying in the same room where the heater is suspected to have malfunctioned while the other seven who survived were in other rooms.

Gas leak from Room heater

• The deceased were part of a group of 15 persons who had travelled from Kerala to Pokhara in Nepal and had stayed at a resort on their way back home
• Al those who died were staying in the same room where the heater is suspected to have malfunctioned while the other seven who survived were in other rooms
• Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan has sought the intervention of External Affairs Minister S Jaishanakar to render all assistance to the families of the deceased