Saturday, 18 November 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
Nine people died and two sustained serious injuries in a road accident after a pickup vehicle fell into a 500 metre deep gorge in Nainital’s Okhalkanda block on Friday morning. The chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and governor lieutenant general (retd) Gurmit Singh also expressed their condolences over the deaths in the accident and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured. Dhami also declared to give ex-gratia of Rs two lakh each to families of people killed in the accident.
The police informed that the accident happened on the Chhirakhan-Reetha Sahib motor road in Okhalkanda around 8 AM when the vehicle was on its way to Haldwani from Nainital. As per the locals, the driver of the vehicle reportedly lost control of the vehicle on the Chheerakhan-Reetha Sahib motor road after which the vehicle fell into a 500 metre deep gorge, the police said. They said that the local villagers were the first to reach the site of the mishap. The locals said that after hearing the vehicle falling into the gorge and the screams of the passengers in it, they rushed to the accident spot to help the victims. Later, a PRD jawan informed the local police and the Nainital district administration about the accident after which local authorities joined the rescue operation. The Nainital senior superintendent of police Prahlad Narayan Meena informed that six people died on the spot and five injured were taken to the hospital for treatment. However, three of the injured later lost their lives during the treatment. A couple and their son were also among the people killed in the accident. The deceased have been identified as Tulsi Prasad (38), his wife Rama Devi (30) and their five-year-old son Tarun besides Devdatt (51), Naresh Paneru (26), Rajendra Paneru (5) Shivraj Singh (25), Narendra Singh and Dhani Devi (38). Hem Chandra Paneru and Yogesh Paneru were severely injured and were admitted to the hospital. Most of the victims are locals. The SSP said that it was revealed in the primary inquiry that the vehicle fell into the gorge while trying to dodge a motorcycle coming from the opposite direction. Many speculated that the accident occurred due to the vehicle being overloaded and the road being damaged. However, the SSP said that the police are investigating the matter and will act further accordingly.
