Six persons, including two minor sisters, were killed and four others critically injured in Doda district late on Saturday when a van skidded off the road into a deep gorge.
According to sources, the vehicle was carrying 10 persons when it met with an accident on the treacherous mountainous route.
Police immediately launched a rescue operation with local help, rushing the injured to a district hospital close by, where doctors declared three persons dead.
One of the injured minor girls died during treatment.
The deceased were identified as Mukhtiyar Ahmad, 28, son of Abdul Gani of Bandoga; Riyaz Ahmad, 35, son of Abdul Gani, resident of Phagsoo; Ireena Begum, 28, wife of Saddam Hussian, resident of Ghunti; Mohammad Rafi, 40, son of Abdul Rehman, resident of Phagsoo; and Ilham, 4 years old, daughter of Mohd Amir.
Ilham’s sister, Noorain, 8, died later during treatment at Government Medical College, Doda.
According to the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police for the Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban (DKR) range Sridhar Patil, “Initial reports suggested that it could be the result of darkness and blind curves.”
Meanwhile, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Doda, Javed Iqbal, said that “the accident occurred on a peripheral road on a hill.”
"Extra vigil is required while driving vehicles on hilly roads as even a slight diversion from the main track on hilly Doda roads may land the vehicle in some very deep gorge," he added.
LG Manoj Sinha offered his condolences in a message, saying he was “deeply grieved and shocked at the tragic loss of lives and injuries.”
Sinha said he had issued instructions to the district administration Doda to provide necessary assistance to the affected persons.
On March 29, this year, ten people were killed in the rugged Ramban area on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway near Battery Chashma when a vehicle ferrying them went off the road and plunged into a 400-foot-deep canyon.
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