Bathinda: Four Amarnath pilgrims were killed and eight others sustained serious injuries after the tempo traveller they were travelling in crashed into a stationary trailer truck on the Bikaner National Highway near Jodhpur Romana village in Punjab’s Bathinda district early Wednesday.
According to officials, the pilgrims were travelling from Rajasthan to Jammu and Kashmir to undertake the annual Amarnath Yatra when the accident occurred. The collision was so severe that the front portion of the tempo traveller was completely crushed, trapping several passengers inside the vehicle.
Police from Sangat police station, along with teams from Sahara Jan Sewa and local residents, launched a rescue operation immediately after receiving information about the accident. The injured were pulled out of the mangled vehicle and rushed to Bathinda Civil Hospital. Those with critical injuries were later referred to AIIMS Bathinda for advanced treatment.
Sangat SHO Jagdeep Singh said police have initiated an investigation into the incident. Preliminary findings suggest that the tempo traveller rammed into a trailer parked on the roadside. The exact cause of the accident will be determined after a detailed investigation.
Police have also begun the process of identifying the deceased and informing their families.
