HP Bus Accident: CM Jai Ram Thakur leaves for Kullu to take stock of situation

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur Friday left for Kullu to enquire about condition of the passengers injured in a bus accident in Banjar tehsil in that district, an official spokesperson said. The chief minister already expressed grief over the tragic accident in which 44 people were killed and 34 others injured Thursday when an overloaded bus fell into a deep drain in Kullu district.

Thakur is scheduled to reach at 12.25 pm at Civil Hospital Kullu where most of the injured are being treated. Some of the severely injured passengers have been shifted to PGI Chandigarh, the spokesperson said. Subsequently, the chief minister will reach the Kullu circuit house where he is expected to meet the district officials and may instruct them to take necessary steps to avoid recurrence of such incidents, he said.

Earlier, he left capital Shimla in a helicopter for Kullu at around 11.30 am, the spokesperson said. The CM Thursday itself ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident and also asked the administration to provide best possible medicare to the injured passengers. Meanwhile, Piyush Tewari, founder of SaveLIFE Foundation, an NGO working for road safety in the country, told PTI, "It's a shame that mass-casualty bus crashes have become a norm in India, especially in hilly states like Himachal Pradesh."

"The state government must immediately order a summary audit of all roads. Engineers and contractors responsible for missing basic installations like crash barriers must be booked for causing countless deaths and injuries," he said.

-PTI