Jeep Tragedy in Pithoragarh: Eight Dead in Shocking Fall
Uttarakhand Accident News –A packed jeep fell in Syuni bridge area in Pithoragarh so eight villagers died including children and families are in deep pain and locals now ask for strong barriers in risky hill turns so PM Modi gave help and ordered a full probe.
A normal ride home turned into deep sorrow for Bokta village in Pithoragarh when a packed jeep lost control in a sharp curve near Syuni bridge and fell into a rocky stream. Sixteen people were inside when the jeep crashed on Tuesday evening and eight never made it back.
Overcrowded Jeep Lost Control
The jeep with number UK 05 TA 0193 was taking people from Muwani to Bokta so it was carrying more than it should in the hilly area. Just one kilometre from Muwani it slipped off the Pithoragarh Thal road and dropped nearly three hundred feet into the Syuni stream full of sharp stones and big rocks. People nearby heard a crash so they thought rocks were falling but then they saw the jeep smashed below.
Raj Bahadur Singh who owns a shop close by said they rushed down in fear and found the broken jeep stuck in the boulders.
Everyone in the jeep was from Bokta village so the loss is heavy for every family here. The dead include driver Narendra Singh who was forty in age and two young sisters Tanuja who was fourteen and Vinita sixteen. Little Simran just eight years old also died in the crash so did Rajendra Singh Hoshiyar Singh Shanti Devi and Diksha Bora.
Chandra Singh who is father of the sisters said they went to buy things in town and were on the way home so he cannot believe they will not return.
Locals Tried to Save Lives
People near the bridge did not wait for help . So they brought ropes and stretchers and climbed down the steep slope in the dark. Some bodies were thrown in the water and on the rocks so villagers used sticks and ropes to pull them up in the rain. The rescue was tough in the slippery stream but they got everyone out before the police team came.
Five were badly hurt like Vinita twenty Yogesh twenty and Sumeet Singh twenty two were shifted in ambulances to Pithoragarh District Hospital and others were taken in cars. Three of them are in serious condition so doctors are trying to save them.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami gave his message of grief and said the reason will be checked soon in a full probe. Prime Minister Modi also gave his message of sorrow and approved money help for families so they get two lakh for each person lost and fifty thousand for those who got hurt. Local SDM Khushboo Pandey visited the spot with police and said the main cause was the overloaded jeep and no guard wall on the curve.
Locals Want Safer Roads
Villagers now want strong barriers in sharp bends so people feel safe on daily rides. Shyam Dutt who stays near Syuni bridge said this road is risky in many turns so without a barrier any car or jeep can fall.
Bokta village is in pain today so everyone hopes the road will get fixed soon so no family has to face this loss again.