Kathmandu, Aug. 24: In yet another tragic road accident, a bus carrying 43 Indian tourists including driver and co-driver plunged into the Marsyangdi River at Aaina Pahara, Anbu Khaireni-2, in Tanahun district, on Friday. 

At least 27 of those traveling in the ill-fated bus (UP 53 AFT 7623) en route to Kathmandu from Pokhara are confirmed dead while the remaining others are currently undergoing treatment in Kathmandu and a local hospital in Tanahun. 

According to DSP Dipak Kumar Raya, spokesperson for the District Police Office in Tanahun, the accident occurred at around 11:30 AM. “The passenger bus fell from Aaina Pahara, Anbu Khaireni-2, into the Marsyangdi River,” DSP Raya said.  

The passengers on the ill-fated bus were part of a larger group of 104 Indian pilgrims from Bhusal village in Jalgaon district of India’s Maharashtra State. They had arrived in Nepal two days earlier for a 10-day tour. The group, traveling in three buses, had reached Pokhara on August 21 and stayed there at Hotel Sports Nepal for two days before heading to Kathmandu on Friday morning. Tragically, one of these buses met with an accident, according to police officials.  

Madhav Prasad Paudel, chief of the Armed Police Force (APF) Battalion in Kurintar, said that most of the passengers traveling in the three buses were families and relatives. 

A rescue operation was launched immediately after the accident, led by a team from the Nepali Army and the Armed Police Force (APF) including 10 divers. 

SSP Madhav Paudel from the Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training School oversaw the operation. Due to the difficult terrain at the accident site, ropes were used to reach the riverbank and rescue the injured as well as recover the deceased. 

Similarly, 35 APF personnel from Number 23 Battalion, Bhanu, Tanahun, were also involved in the rescue operation. According to police, out of the 43 passengers on board, 41 were rescued from the accident site while the bodies of two others were retrieved from other locations. While at least 14 people died on the spot, the death toll reached 27 by the evening as those rescued alive also succumbed to injuries while undergoing treatment.

Those confirmed dead till Friday evening include 15 females and 11 males dead at Anbu Khaireni Hospital. Similarly, one child died at a Chitwan-based hospital, according to Chief District Officer of Tanahun, Janardan Gautam. Among the survivors, 12 injured passengers were airlifted by a Nepali Army helicopter to Kathmandu later in the afternoon. They are currently receiving treatment at the TU Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj. The army helicopter continued to shuttle between the accident site and Kathmandu to transport the injured and provide medical assistance.