At least 10 dead after bus carrying Hindu pilgrims skids off bridge in Kashmir

A bus carrying Hindu pilgrims to a shrine in Indian-controlled Kashmir skid off a highway bridge into a Himalayan gorge Tuesday, killing at least 10 people and injuring 55, police said.

The bus was on way to Katra town from the northern state of Punjab’s Amritsar city when it fell into the gorge near Jammu city, police said.

For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.

Local police officer Chandan Kohli told reporters that the bus was overloaded. He said the dead were from India’s eastern Bihar state.

Residents and authorities rushed to the accident spot and launched a rescue operation. The injured have been hospitalized.

The shrine of Vaishno Devi in Katra is highly revered by Hindus and hundreds of thousands visit it every year.

India has some of the highest road death rates in the world, with hundreds of thousands of people killed and injured annually.

Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads, and aging vehicles.

Read more:

Seven Indians rescued after boats capsize near Shark Island in Sharjah's Khorfakkan

MiG-21 military jet crashes in India, three people dead: Police

India arrests five for conducting human sacrifice at Hindu temple