19 killed as bus falls into gorge in Himachal

SHIMLA - Nineteen people were killed and 12 injured near this Himachal Pradesh capital when a private bus skidded off the road and fell into a gorge Thursday, police said.

It was the second major road accident in the state in less than 24 hours.

A private bus coming from Sharounta to Shimla met with an accident at Sanai village near Chaila on the Kotkhai-Theog road, 45 km from here, around 4.30 p.m., Deputy Superintendent of Police Badri Dutt told IANS over phone from the spot.

He said the injured were admitted to the Civil Hospital at Theog and the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital in Shimla.

Rescue workers said the spot where the accident occurred had been badly damaged due to the recent rains. They said the death toll could increase as the gorge was quite deep.

Local villagers were the first to reach the spot and begin rescue operations.

The cause of the accident is yet to ascertained, another police official said.

Governor Urmila Singh, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal and Leader of Opposition Vidya Stokes expressed grief over the accident.

On Wednesday evening, 38 people, including 22 women and nine children, were killed and an equal number injured in Mandi district Wednesday evening when an overcrowded truck skidded off the road and fell into a gorge.