Three Kanwar Yatra pilgrims die after their truck fell into a gorge in Uttarakhand

A truck ferrying ‘kanwariyas’ (pilgrims who undertake Kanwar Yatra) overturned in the Tehri district of Uttarakhand on Wednesday (July 2, 2025), leaving three dead and 18 injured.

A group of over 60 ‘kanwariyas’, from the Bulandshahr district of Uttar Pradesh, were going towards Uttarkashi district to set up a Kanwar camp near Gangotri and Yamunotri temples, said police. The pilgrims were travelling to set up camp under the banner of Shiv Shakti Kaman Seva Trust located in Secunderabad, Bulandshahr, for the 8th consecutive year.

They were travelling in three trucks, which were moving behind each other. One of the trucks, in which some 21 people were travelling, turned turtle. The accident took place in the afternoon, and police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), along with health teams, were rushed to the spot immediately.

They managed to save a four-year-old child stuck in the front part of the truck while three pilgrims, named Vicky, Sunil Saini and Sanjay, were declared dead at the hospital. The injured ones were admitted to the Narendra Nagar district hospital, while the critically injured ones were shifted to AIIMS Rishikesh.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami condoled the demise of the pilgrims and instructed the District Magistrate of Tehri to provide all possible help to the injured Kanwariyas.