Eight tourists missing after vehicle plunge into gorge in Himachal's Chamba

Eight people, including two children and a driver, are missing after a vehicle carrying tourists reportedly met with an accident in Himachal Pradesh's Chamba district, prompting authorities to launch a search and rescue operation in the remote mountainous region.

The incident is suspected to have occurred near Kalaban on the Bairagarh-Sach Pass-Killar route in Churah subdivision of Chamba district. The missing persons include two couples and two children from Bengaluru and Chhattisgarh who had travelled to Dalhousie for a holiday.

According to preliminary information, a family from Bengaluru had hired a taxi in Dalhousie for sightseeing in the snow-clad mountains. They later shared the vehicle with another tourist family staying in the hill station. The group left on Friday for a trip along the Bairagarh-Killar route via Sach Pass.

Concern arose when the taxi failed to return to Dalhousie as scheduled. The vehicle owner subsequently tracked the taxi using GPS and found that it had remained stationary near Kalaban for an extended period. Upon further enquiries, fears emerged that the vehicle may have plunged into a deep gorge in the area.

The matter was reported to police, following which authorities planned a search operation. Police personnel and teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are expected to participate in the rescue efforts in the difficult terrain.

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu described the incident as "extremely heartbreaking" and said the state government was closely monitoring the situation.

In a post on X, Sukhu said reports indicated that a vehicle carrying eight people had fallen into a deep gorge between Kalaban and Satrundi in Chamba district.

"The news of a vehicle carrying eight people falling into a deep gorge between Kalaban and Satrundi in Chamba district is extremely heartbreaking," the chief minister said.

He noted that rescue teams were facing challenges due to the area's rugged geography and lack of mobile network connectivity.

"Due to the challenging geographical conditions and it being a no-network area, difficulties are arising in the relief and rescue operations," Sukhu said.

The chief minister added that local administration officials, rescue teams and residents were working in coordination to carry out the operation and that all necessary resources were being provided by the state government.

"Through the coordinated efforts of the local administration, rescue teams and the people, the relief and rescue campaign is continuing with full vigor. The state government is keeping a constant watch on the situation and providing all necessary resources," he said.

Expressing solidarity with the affected families, Sukhu said the government stood with them during the difficult time and prayed for the safe return of all those missing.

Rescue teams are continuing efforts to locate the missing tourists amid challenging weather and terrain conditions in the high-altitude region.

- Ends

with inputs from Vishal Anand