16 killed, 35 hurt in Rajouri bus accident

JAMMU: At least 16 people were killed and 35 injured, nine of them seriously, when an overloaded passenger bus skidded off the road and plunged into a deep gorge at Sain Ganji Ziarat in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, police said here.

The bus, which had left Parori-Gujran village early this morning, was on its way to Rajouri town via Darhal, when the driver lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a sharp turn at Sain Ganji Ziarat and it plunged into the 250-feet deep gorge.

Nine persons died on the spot and seven others succumbed to their injuries while being shifted from the site of the accident, police said.

The dead and injured were extricated from the site of accident by rescue teams and rushed to a nearby hospital, they said, adding that the seriously injured have been brought to Jammu by helicopter for specialised treatment in the Government Medical College hospital.

The Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, Pramod Jain and other senior officers of Rajouri district have rushed to the site.