SHIMLA
On Sunday, at least nine people died while three were injured in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district after a bridge collapsed as a result of boulders rolling down a hill due to a landslide.
Saju Ram Rana, Superintendent of Police, Kinnaur district, said that the nine persons who died were tourists traveling in a vehicle. A rescue team is present on the spot. “Nine persons died and three are injured after boulders rolled downhill due to landslide in Kinnaur. The Batseri bridge collapsed in the incident. Rescue team present at the spot,” Rana was quoted saying by ANI.
Owing to a landslide, rocks fell from a hill near Batseri to Sangla Chitkul road, and 11 people, including the driver, were in the tempo traveler. The rest suffered injuries, along with another passerby who was walking on the road.
“The people sitting in the traveller were from different parts of the country and had come to Kinnaur to visit. Police Home Guards and ITBP personnel have reached the site for rescue operations. The QRT team of Sangla Police is engaged in extracting the dead bodies,” the SP told ANI.
The connectivity of Sangla valley was cut off from the rest of the state as the Batseri Bridge over Baspa river has collapsed due to the fall of big boulders and massive landslide, and the administration was facing difficulty in carrying out rescue operation and restoration work.
DC Kinnaur, Abid Husain said that the administration along with the local people was engaged in rescue work on a war footing and the people have been advised to stay away from the area.
Jai Ram Thakur, the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh expressed deep grief over the deaths of people due to the incident.
He directed the administration to ensure immediate relief and rescue operations and to provide immediate relief to the affected.
“The accident in Kinnaur’s Batseri due to landslide is heart-wrenching. It is very sad that a vehicle carrying tourists came under this, in which 9 died and 3 others also got injured. May God grant peace to the departed souls and strength to the bereaved family,” Thakur tweeted
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP Nat president also expressed grief over the tragic incident and condoled to the families of the affected.
The monsoon season is wreaking havoc in Himachal. Kinnaur, Lahul Spiti, Kullu Chamba, Mandi and Shimla districts are the worst-hit areas.