8 killed, 20 injured as bus falls off bridge in Jammu

Jammu: Eight persons were killed and 20 injured when a bus skidded off a bridge and fell into a gorge in Jammu district, officials said Tuesday.

The bus, which was on its way to Katra, met with the accident in Jajjar Kotli area, they said. The bus was carrying pilgrims from outside Jammu and Kashmir to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine. Katra is the base camp for the pilgrims visiting the famous shrine atop Trikuta hills.

”Eight people have died and 20 others are injured. Rescue operation is on,” Jammu Senior Superintendent of Police Chandan Kohli told PTI.

Local residents and police rushed to the spot and launched the rescue operation.

The injured were taken to the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu.

On May 21, a 27-year-old woman was killed and 24 people were injured when a Rajasthan-bound bus carrying Mata Vaishno Devi pilgrims overturned in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district.