12 people killed in road accidents in HP

Twelve people were killed and nine others were injured in two separate accidents in Kullu and Mandi districts today, officials said.

Mulak Ram (48), his wife, son and brother-in-law and two other persons were killed when a huge rock caved in and fell on their car, pushing it into a gorge near Rampur on Nirmand- Rampur road, 130 kms from here early this morning, they said.

The incident came to light this morning when some locals found the wreckages of the car and its occupants trapped under rocks on the banks of Sutlej river, the officials said.

The occupants of the ill-fated car were on their way to Nirmand from Rampur, they said.
 

The police and Army were called in and mutilated bodies of the victims were extricated from the debris.

The deceased were identified as Mulak Ram, his wife Sita Devi(38), son Manjeet (13) and brother-in-law Gurdiyal (28). Two carpenters, Vijay and Manoj, who had taken lift in the vehicle were also killed in the accident, they said.

All the bodies have been recovered and next of kin of the deceased have been provided immediate relief, Tehsildar Nirmand Neerja Sharma said.

In a separate accident, six persons, including a woman and child, were killed and nine others were injured when a tourist vehicle from Ambala rolled down from hilltop near Kangoo in Mandi district, about 135 km from here today.

Mohinder Pal (54), his wife Santosh Rani (50), Neelam Sethi (65), Dharam Pal Kumar (64), Shashi Oberoi (59), all residents of Haryana's Ambala and Ravinder Kumar (48) a resident of Panchkula were killed in the accident, an official said.

The bodies of the victims are being recovered while the injured persons have been rushed to the Civil hospital, SDM Sundernagar Taranjit Singh said.

The vehicle was registered in Punjab and the occupants were on their way to Ner Chowk to attend a marriage, the official said.

The district administration has given Rs 10,000 on spot to the next of kin of each person killed in the accident and Rs 5,000 and Rs 3,000 to the injured, an official said.