4 killed, 6 injured as taxi falls into gorge

CHAMPAWAT: Four people, including three men and one woman, were killed while six others (one woman and five men) were injured when a

taxi

carrying ten people plunged into a 90-metre-deep ditch in NH9 near Dhaun in

Champawat

on Saturday. The taxi was on its way to

Pithoragarh

from Tanakpur.


The taxi was not overloaded, as it was carrying people within its capacity. Officials said reasons behind the accident were being investigated.

Meanwhile, work for the “All-weather” road, the Prime Minister’s pet project, was ongoing on the highway where the accident took place. Debris from the construction work was lying on the road, which might have made it slippery.

“Four people died on the spot. The six injured were taken to

Champawat district

hospital. Two of them had been seriously injured and were sent to Sushila Tiwari Hospital in Haldwani for higher treatment,” said Anshu Bisht, duty incharge, Disaster Managment, Champawat.