Bus mishap claims 40 lives in north India

Around 40 people were killed and five injured when a bus skidded off the road and fell into a 500-foot-deep gorge in India's northern hilly state of Himachal Pradesh, late Monday night. According to a Press Trust of India (PTI) report, the bus tragedy occurred in the state's Kangra district. Rescue work is reportedly being carried on and the dead bodies recovered from the wreckage of the bus. Those injured were admitted in a nearby hospital. The 50-seater bus was ferrying passengers from Palampur to a hilltop shrine, and was said to be overcrowded. According to those injured, the driver was trying to adjust his seat in the moving bus, and he suddenly lost control over the steering and the bus fell into the deep gorge. This is the second major accident in the state in less than a month. In an earlier incident, 53 people were killed and 46 injured on August 11 when an overcrowded bus fell into a 300-feet deep gorge in Chamba district of the state.