Mandi/Keylong, August 14
Fifteen members, including seven women, of Ladakh cultural troupe were killed and seven others injured when a private Mazda bus (JK10-4131) they were travelling in was hit by a boulder near Gemur village, 17 km from Keylong on the Keylong-Leh National Highway-21, around 9.30 pm last night. The bus went sideways and plunged into a 200-ft gorge along the Bhaga river.

The rescue team comprising doctors, district administration officials, police, ITBP, BRO, and locals brought the injured to the Regional Hospital, Keylong, this morning. All of them are out of danger.

Tragically, all of them belong to the Choglangsar region of Leh which was battered by a cloudburst in August last year. They were to perform Ladakhi folk dance at Keylong tomorrow during the Independence Day function and three-day-long tribal fair.

All the bodies were retrieved by the IPTB jawans from the steep rocky gorge. Twelve bodies have been identified. They included Chering Puldun (45) from Spituk, Kaljing (45) Leh, Chante (28) Choglangsar, Tashi Angdu (48) Thikse, Rinchin (26) Spituk, Lobsang Rinchen from Thikse, Sonam Zingzin (43) Leh, Kilovar Chang from Yangnamsar, Kochang Chering (45) Pulzer, in charge of the troupe, Lobsang (driver-cum-owner of the ill-fated bus), Ziamed Andez (23) Chagha and Kunjam Dolma (28) from Spituk. The three women victims remained unidentified.

It was the sheer courage shown by Khail Angdu, who despite his injuries, walked 17 km and met the BRO (Labour) in tents who contacted locals at Kolang village, who informed the police at 3.30 am today, about six hours after the accident. The injured said they heard something hit the bus at which the driver turned the bus sideways to save it but it plunged into the gorge. Even the road was narrow at the spot. The injured have been identified as Shiyang Vangyal (45) from Changmangsar, Chering Yangzum (22) Egu, Tashi Mutup (40) Spituk, Thilesh Dorje (30) Urvis, Ringzing Chaughyal (28) Spituk, Khail Angdu (44) Thkise and Sonam Chaugyal (24) from Stok.

Acting CMO, Regional Hospital, Keylong, Dr Abhinav Rana said all the patients are stable and out of danger and will be shifted to the Regional Hospital at Kullu when the highway opens.

Lahaul-Spiti DC Rajiv Shankar, who monitored the rescue operations, said they bodies would be sent to Serchu tomorrow from where the Leh rescue team would take them to their families for last rites. The communication remained disrupted to Lahaul-Spiti, he added. Governor Urmila Singh, Chief Minister PK Dhumal and Mandi MP and Union Minister Virbhadra Singh and Lahaul-Spiti MLA Ramlal Markande expressed their grief and shock over the accident.

Mandi/Kullu, August 14
Even as the Chandigarh-Manali and Jogindernagar-Mandi stretch of the Pathankot-Mandi highway were restored for one-way movement of traffic after 24 hours, passengers and tourists travelling to Lahaul, Spiti and Leh have been stopped at Marhi from the Manali side and at Koksar from the Lahaul side as the Rohtang Pass and Rani Nullah remained breached due to snow and landslides on the Marhi-Rohtang stretch.

DC, Lahaul, Rajiv Shankar said they had stopped traffic at Koksar due to snow at the Rohtang Pass and landslides between Rani Nullah and Marhi till the BRO restored these for traffic. But the weather forecast for Lahaul said it would rain and snow in the next 24 hours.

DC, Kullu, BM Nanta said they were allowing tourists up to Marhi only. Most of the link roads in the district had been restored, he added. The PWD restored the Mandi-Kullu highway stretch around 9 am today clearing 5-ft debris dumped at Duwada.

The 126-MW Larji power house resumed generation at 2.50 am after the power house remained shut down for 24 hours. The highway was breached at more than 12 points due to landslides.

The Dadour bridge breach was repaired and opened for one-way traffic, said Jatinder Singh, Executive Engineer, NH-21. The supplies of milk and newspapers reached Kullu and Manali after two days.

The Mandi-Jogindernagar stretch also remained disrupted and risky for traffic at Khani Nullah due to the continuous debris falling from the hillside.

The bus services between Sarkaghat and Mandi and between Janjheli and Mandi remained disrupted due to landslides. All the links roads to Barot, Thaldokhod, Karsog in Mandi district and Banjar, Ani subdivision in Kullu district remained breached at several places between the Jalori Pass and Ani.

BRO commander AK Dikshit said they hoped to restore the Rani Nullah and Rohtang Pass towards late evening hours. The Bara La Pass in Lahaul is opened, he added.

Mandi, August 14
More than 40,000 residents in this temple town and dozens of villages in the Balh-Baggi-Sundernagar-Paddar belt today faced an acute shortage of drinking water as the surging Beas submerged the two main pumping houses located at Sauli Khad while the Suketi river inundated several Irrigation and Public Health (IPH) schemes along its riversides in the belt.

The water crisis in the town worsened as traditional water sources (baolis) had also been flooded by the Beas and the Suketi, rendering the water unfit for human consumption.

Though the IPH Department pressed its men and machineries into service, residents here remained without water for the past 24 hours. Residents of the Sauli Khad locality are the most affected as they have not been supplied drinking water for the past six days. Residents in other parts of the town also resented as they too did not receive water supply in the past 24 hours.

Superintending Engineer, IPH, Ashwani Guota said the pumping houses which submerged yesterday and the gravity water schemes at Maigal and Bijni were being restored as these were damaged by the heavy rains. “We have restored water supply to the hospital,” he claimed.

Ravinder Sood adds from Palampur: Drinking water crisis continued in the town and adjoining 50 villages for the second day today as the IPH Department could not repair the damaged pipelines because of inclement weather. Long queues of residents were seen near handpumps and water sources. Executive Engineer of the IPH Department Suresh Mahajan said efforts were being made to restore the supply of water to the town.