After the bloodiest road accident near the Akhnoor sub-division of Jammu district, the Union Territory administration ordered a magisterial inquiry into the mishap in which 22 pilgrims lost their lives.
During the last two years, three inquiries have been ordered by the administration after repeated road accidents in different areas of Jammu province.
While recommendations of the inquiry panels are yet to be implemented, deaths on the roads going unabated in the Jammu province of the Union Territory.
As reported earlier, twenty-two pilgrims were killed and 57 others injured when an over-loaded bus, carrying pilgrims hailing from UP to the cave shrine Shiv Khori in Reasi district, rolled down into a deep gorge in the Akhnoor area of this Jammu on Thursday.
As per reports nine people were killed on the spot, eight dead bodies were later found under the bus and retrieved by lifting them with the help of Army cranes, whereas, the rest five others succumbed to the injuries while being shifted to Sub District Hospital, Akhnoor.
The ill-fated bus bearing registration number UP8CT/4058 came from Hathras ( Aligarh) in Uttar Pradesh and it was on its way to the Shiv Khori shrine in the Ransoo area of Reasi district. After performing Darshan at Shiv Khori, the pilgrims had to go to Katra Mata Vaishno Devi on Wednesday. In this bus, about 90 passengers including children were travelling.
DM orders a magisterial probe
District Magistrate Jammu Sachin Kumar Vaishya said that 22 persons have died in this mishap.
Presently, 57 injured are under treatment at GMC Jammu and at Sub-district Hospital Akhnoor.
Furthermore, the District Magistrate has initiated a magisterial inquiry to investigate the cause of the accident. ADM Jammu shall submit a report within 7 days in this regard.
The district administration is closely monitoring the treatment of the injured and is in communication with the authorities of Hathras and Aligarh, the native places of the passengers.
Earlier panels have yet to submit their report
After one of the bloodiest road accidents in Jammu province, the Union Territory administration had set up a three-member panel in November 2023 to enquire into the circumstances leading to the accident which resulted in the loss of precious human lives with injuries to several other passengers.
The Divisional Commissioner, Jammu Ramesh Kumar had ordered a constitution of a three-member panel to probe into the circumstances leading to the accident in which 39 people were killed.
He said it was imperative to inquire into the circumstances leading to the accident which resulted in loss of precious human lives with injuries to several other passengers.
Three officers Ravi Kumar Bharti, ADM, Doda, Superintending Engineer PWD, Doda, and ARTO, Doda, were appointed as members of the committee who would enquire into the circumstances leading to the accident.
The committee was asked to inquire into the incident and furnish a detailed inquiry report to this office within a week.
Another panel was constituted in February 2023
In February 2023, the government formed a high-powered, four-member committee to propose measures for making the Batote-Doda-Kishtwar road accident-free.
According to order GAD-ADMOIV/21/2023-09-GAD dated February 20, 2023, issued by Sanjeev Verma, Commissioner-Secretary of the General Administration Department (GAD), the committee was established to address the issue of road accidents on the Batote-Doda-Kishtwar Road.
The committee's formation follows a directive from the High Court. The Chief Engineer (Secretary Technical, Public Works (R&B) Department) will chair the committee. Other members include the Secretary of the Road Safety Council, the Executive Director (P) NHIDCL, Jammu Office, and the Superintending Engineer PW(R&B) Circle Doda, along with the Senior Superintendent of Police, (Traffic) Rural, Jammu.
On December 20, 2022, a division bench of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court, comprising Justice Tashi Rabstan and Justice Rajesh Sekhri, instructed the UT Government to form an expert committee to investigate the frequent accidents on the Batote-Doda-Kishtwar Road in the Chenab Valley and recommend preventive measures.
The court also directed the government to install rolling barriers or steel pillars on curved roads and near culverts, and to submit an Action Taken Report (ATR) by the next hearing.
On December 17, 2022, social activist Asif Iqbal Butt from Kahara in Doda district wrote to the Chief Justice of the J&K and Ladakh High Court, urging the court to take suo-moto cognizance of the rising road accidents in the Chenab Valley's hilly terrain.
"The narrow roads in the upper reaches with numerous blind curves necessitate the installation of rolling barriers to mitigate accident severity," Butt's letter stated. "Establishing robust road infrastructure, implementing road safety recommendations, and ensuring strict adherence to traffic rules are imperative."
Road accidents in J&K
Year Total Accidents Deaths
2016 4767 958
2017 5624 926
2018 5978 984
2019 5796 996
2020 4860 728
2021 5452 774
2022 6092 805
2023 6298 893
Accidents on the roads of Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban districts in Jammu and Kashmir, collectively known as the Chenab region, are a daily occurrence. Rarely does a day pass without fatalities or injuries from traffic accidents in the area.
Roads in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly in the Chenab region, have become perilous. According to the Union Ministry of Road, Transport, and Highways, Jammu and Kashmir ranks second in India for the number of road accidents per 10,000 vehicles, with an average of over 900 deaths annually over the past five years.
