Overview
- A Tata Sumo taxi carrying about a dozen people returning from gram panchayat voting fell into a deep gorge in Kullu on Thursday, killing three women and injuring nine other passengers.
- Local schoolchildren and villagers first raised the alarm and joined police, fire and health teams in rescue efforts that moved the injured to Kullu Regional Hospital with some taken in private vehicles before ambulances arrived.
- Two critically injured patients were reported referred for advanced care at AIIMS Bilaspur and several injured remain under treatment while hospitals completed admissions and postmortem procedures for the deceased.
- Kullu (Sadar) police have registered a case and opened a formal probe; early accounts cite the driver losing control on a narrow, curved stretch and one report quotes the driver saying brakes failed, though investigators are still determining the exact cause.
- The crash underscores the danger of narrow hill roads and heavier rural travel during local elections and may prompt checks of vehicle condition, road safety measures and emergency-response gaps in the region.