30 feared dead, eight injured in bus accident in Northeast India

At least 30 passengers were killed when a bus they were travelling in plunged into a deep gorge on Tuesday night in the Indian north-eastern hilly state of Meghalaya, said police.

Eight others, critically injured, were rushed to a hospital.
 
DGP Meghalaya Rajib Mehata speaking to reporters said, “Until now we have recovered 11 bodies and eight injured. The injured have been admitted to Jowai civil hospital.
 
“We fear a total of 30 dead as the bus fell more than 250 feet down into the gorge.”
 
The ill-fated bus of Arhan Travels, operational under Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC), left from the outskirts of Silchar cities Irongmara in neighbouring Assam and was travelling to Guwahati when it skidded off the road at around 10:30pm and plunged into the gorge in Sonapur area of the East Jaintia Hills. 
 

Additional SP at East Jaintia Hills L Sangma said, “Police, fire-fighters, home guards and villagers are carrying out the rescue operations but rain is hindering the work.”

Meantime, Dr EA Paswet, medical superintendent of Jowai Civil Hospital informed, “One of the injured succumbed to his injuries this morning while the condition of the others is stable. The injured are from various places like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam.”

It is suspected that most of those dead were engaged with tea gardens and a few others were from the outskirts of Silchar.