Uttarakhand bus overturns, 30 hurt

As many as 30 passengers were injured, including six seriously, when the Uttarakhand depot bus (UK 04 PA 1716) they were travelling in overturned near Kandaghat on the Solan-Shimla highway-5 around 1.50 pm today.

The bus fell into a tunnel yard after breaking barricades when its driver hit the rear side of a tipper while trying to overtake it. The bus was being driven in a rash and negligent manner, according to the tipper driver, who was going to Shimla from Kalka.

Meanwhile, the police booked the bus driver for rash and negligent driving and launched a probe, said SP, Solan, Gaurav Singh.

The bus was going to Tanakpur in Uttarakhand from Shimla and Nepalese labourers, who were returning home after working in apple orchards, were travelling in it. According to passengers, the bus developed a mechanical defect and overturned near Kandaghat. Four of the six seriously injured passengers were referred to the IGMC, Shimla, while two others were taken to the Solan Regional Hospital. The other injured passengers were discharged after first-aid at the Kandaghat hospital.