While the pall of gloom descended on Kalaroos and its adjoining villages, the news of accident created panic in most parts north Kashmir as scores of schools were on excursion from the area. The Education Department has cancelled the registration of the school and withdrew its affiliation.
ACCIDENT
Police said the bus bearing registration number JK14-6144 was carrying 69 students of Iqra Educational Institute (Middle School) Kalaroos in Kupwara district. The bus police said was on way to Baba Reshi shrine and while crossing a curve at Nambal Nard near Tangmarg, the driver lost control over the vehicle and it fell into a 60 feet deep gorge.
“The accident took place at 11.43 am. So far three persons are dead and 44 injured,” Station House Officer Tangmarg Zahoor Ahmad told Greater Kashmir over telephone. “We have registered a case vide FIR number 84 under section 279 and 304 in Police Station Tangmarg and have started investigations.”
Police identified the deceased as 14 year old Owais Manzoor Wani, Jehangir Ahmad Dar (25) teacher and bus driver Akhter Hussain Ganie (32). The body of the driver was trapped under the wreckage of the bus, and was retrieved after 3 hours of rescue operation carried jointly by local residents, police and the Army.Soon after the news of mishap spread, the locals in hundreds from Nambal Nard and its adjoining villages rushed to the spot to rescue the victims. They were later joined by police and the Army contingents in rescue operation. Soon after the new about the accident spread in the area, sources said people made announcements on loudspeakers of the mosques, appealing the people to come out and join the rescue operations. The women were seen carrying potable water and offering it to the injured. The students, sources added were crying for help. “The scene at accident site was frustrating. But we kept our nerves and managed to get the injured out of the bus,” Abdul Rashid of Nambal Nard told Greater Kashmir.
The students, who were being rescued, were shifted to different hospitals of Srinagar. Around 24 were admitted in SMHS, 9 in SKIMS and 11 in JVC. The injured were ferried in ambulances, police and Army vehicles first to Primary Health Center (PHC) Tangmarg and later to hospitals in Srinagar.
In SMHS hospital, the spleen of class 4th student was removed. “We got 24 injured children, spleen of one student was removed and four were shifted to SKIMS,” Medical Superintendent SMHS hospital Dr Nazir Ahmad Chowdhary told Greater Kashmir adding nobody died in his hospital. “Every student is monitored by teams of doctors and hopeful they will recover.”
The officials at SKIMS told Greater Kashmir that nine injured students were brought to institute. “One among them is in Intensive Care Unit,” they said adding that condition of injured is being monitored closely. The officials at JVC hospital said that 14 injured students were brought for treatment among them three were shifted to SKIMS. “Others are being treated and are to some extent stable,” they said.
SCENE AT KALAROOS
Pall of gloom descended on Kalaroos village once the news of accident spread in the area and its adjoining villages. The parents and other residents were mourning and were trying to get the first hand information about their wards.
The women were wailing and beating their chest and male folk was trying to get the exact details about the tragedy. “Chaos and confusion prevailed in Kalaroos and its adjoining areas soon after the news spread. The people came out of their homes and thronged the roads. They were inquiring from each other about the accident,” Mushtaq Ahmad Lone of Kalaroos told Greater Kashmir over telephone.
The shops in Kalaroos and its adjoining got closed within minutes after news of accident and employees, traders and students of other schools returned, leaving their engagements half way. Most of the other schools in the area also were closed after they heard the news of the tragic accident.
Though, the people were unable to get any communication link with the teachers, but they later relied on the information provided to them by Police Control Room (PCR) Kupwara and police station Kupwara. Most of the parents were successful in arriving at SMHS, SKIMS, JVC and Tangmarg hospitals were the injured were being treated.
NO PERMISSION SOUGHT
The school neither sought permission for excursion from the Zonal Education Officer Kalaroos nor from Chief Education Officer Kupwara. “They (school management) has not sought permission from my office or ZEO office,” CEO Kupwara Muzzafar Ahmad told Greater Kashmir. “They have left for excursion on their own. No school here approaches us for permission.”
GOVT SHOCKED, ANNOUNCES RELIEF
Most of ministers have expressed grief over the accident and expressed solidarity with accident victims.
Thursday 12 July 2012
http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2012/Jul/12/3-killed-44-injured-as-picnic-bus-rolls-into-gorge-51.asp
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