Chitwan, Aug. 24: The bodies of Indian citizens killed in a bus accident at Aina Pahra in Tanahun district on Friday have been taken to India. After the autopsy at the Bharatpur Hospital, the bodies were airlifted to India from the Bharatpur Airport on Saturday afternoon by an Indian Air Force plane.

Chief District Officer of Chitwan Indradev Yadav informed that 25 of the 27 dead bodies were taken by the aircraft. According to him, the bodies of the driver and helper of the bus have been taken to Gorakhpur by road.

India's Minister of State for Youth and Sports Raksha Nikhil Khadse also arrived in person in Bharatpur to collect the bodies of the deceased. The bodies of the dead passengers were brought to Bharatpur from Abukharehani on Friday night.

The bus carrying Indian tourists en route to Kathmandu from Pokhara fell off the road near Abukhareni in Tanahun at around 11:30 AM on Friday. Among 43 people on board the ill-fated bus carrying pilgrims to the Pashupatinath temple, 27 tourists died on the spot. Immediately after the accident, the Nepalese Army, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force personnel and locals had reached the accident site for rescue operation.

Among the deceased were 15 women, 11 men and a four-year-old girl. Similarly, 6 men and 10 women were injured in the accident.

The injured are being treated at the TU Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj, Kathmandu. The dead and injured are from Bhusawal village of Maharashtra, India.