Kashmir Impulse Desk

Srinagar, July 28

At least 39 Amarnath Yatris returning from the Amarnath Cave shrine were injured on Tuesday when the bus carrying them from Baltal to Jammu overturned and plunged into a gorge near Ganiwan in Kashmir’s Ganderbal district, officials said.

The bus, AR11D 5655, lost control while negotiating the steep and winding S-Mode stretch and came to rest on a residential house, they said.

No one was inside the house at the time, officials said, although the building was damaged.

Local volunteers, police, paramilitary forces, and Army joined a rescue operation after the accident.

Teams from the police, Army’s 21 Rashtriya Rifles, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), 2 Assam Rifles, and the Yatra Police helped evacuate the injured yatris.

The injured were taken to Sub-District Hospital Kangan and the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) in Soura.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha spoke to Deputy Commissioner Ganderbal Jatin Kishore and senior health officials to review the situation.

“By the grace of Baba Amarnath, all 39 yatris admitted this morning are currently in stable condition and responding well to treatment,” Sinha said after visiting the injured at SKIMS.

He directed hospital authorities to provide the highest standard of medical care and asked officials to make arrangements for the safe return of yatris to their respective hometowns once they recover.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah expressed concern over the accident and directed authorities to ensure the injured received the best possible treatment.

He deputed Health Minister Sakina Itoo to visit SKIMS and oversee the medical care of the yatris.

Itoo later met the injured and reviewed their treatment. MLA Kangan Mian Mehar Ali also visited the hospital and enquired about their condition.

Officials said the coordinated response by locals and different security agencies helped prevent the accident from turning into a larger tragedy.