15 dead as landslide crushes bus in Himachal, rescue operations ongoing

At least 15 people were killed and several others feared trapped after a massive landslide struck a private bus in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday evening.

The tragedy occurred around 6:40 pm, when a large portion of the mountain collapsed onto the bus carrying approximately 25 passengers. The bus was en route from Marotan to Ghumarwin.

Officials confirmed the recovery of 15 bodies, while a few others, including a child, remain trapped under debris.Two siblings were rescued and are receiving treatment at AIIMS Bilaspur. Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, who cut short his visit to Kullu Dussehra, arrived in Bilaspur late at night to oversee rescue operations and meet the victims’ families. He said postmortems will be conducted at Berthin Hospital, with bodies handed over to families by mid-morning.

Agnihotri indicated that recent rains likely triggered the landslide but confirmed a magisterial inquiry has been ordered. He also raised concerns about the sustainability of current development projects in Himachal’s young, fragile mountains, citing disaster-related losses of ₹20,000 crore since 2023.

The region has been battered by intermittent rainfall since Monday, destabilizing slopes further.

National leaders, including President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Amit Shah and J.P. Nadda, and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, expressed condolences. PM Modi announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh for the families of each deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured.

Shah confirmed that National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have joined ongoing rescue operations. Eyewitnesses reported the entire mountain crashing onto the bus, with heavy machinery including JCBs and cranes deployed to clear debris.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu directed officials to expedite rescue efforts. Congress leaders Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also expressed grief and assured full support to the victims and their families.