Shimla: Thirty-two members of a marriage party were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in fell into a gorge in Himachal Pradesh' Chamba district, police said on Thursday. In a separate accident, seven people died when their SUV rolled into another gorge in the same district.
The members of the marriage party were killed when their mini truck (Tata 407) carrying 35 to 40 people fell into a 300-metre-deep gorge near the Chamera dam, some 45 km from district headquarters Chamba, Superintendent of Police Madhu Sudan told from the spot.
Police came to know about the accident at around 12.30 a.m. on Thursday. Sudan said most of the victims, mostly men, belonged to closely-knit families of a village near the spot.
Another police official said the accident spot has been experiencing continuous rainfall for the past two days.
In the other accident, a Scorpio car carrying eight people fell into a gorge near Bharmour, some 65 km from Chamba. The accident took place at around 9.30. p.m. on Wednesday.
Seven bodies have been recovered, said Sudan.
Chamba town is located some 450 km from state capital Shimla.