Amarnath Buses Collide Again; 17 Pilgrims Injured

SRINAGAR: A collision involving three buses carrying Amarnath Yatra pilgrims in Kashmir Valley’s southern Kulgam district left 17 pilgrims injured on Sunday.

The witnesses and police sources said that the mishap took place along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH44) near the Tachloo crossing in Kulgam’s Khudwani area. “Over ten pilgrims were injured in the accident, which took place during convoy movement en- route to Baltal (a base-camp of the annual pilgrimage),” a police official said.

However, a report put the number of the injured at 17, saying that most of them sustained minor injuries, except two who suffered head injuries. Both have been sent for CT scans, and reports are awaited, a hospital official said.

The injured were initially treated at a hospital in nearby Qaimoh township and later referred to GMC Anantnag for further medical care. The hospital sources said that all were stable and being discharged.

The police sources said that the accident occurred when one of the buses, bearing registration number MT41ZD 7546, reportedly lost control and hit two other vehicles, registered as MP44ZD 7717 and JK2Y 0798.

This incident follows another collision that took place on July 5 in the Ramban district, where five buses collided near Chanderkote due to brake failure, injuring 36 pilgrims. It had prompted Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, to direct the concerned officials to implement comprehensive safety measures for vehicles carrying the devotees.

“I directed the officials concerned to implement comprehensive safety measures for vehicles of pilgrims undertaking Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra and ensure safety checks at all key locations and uninterrupted availability of food and medicines at Yatra route", an official statement issued here had quoted Sinha as saying.