A tragic road accident unfolded in the hilly terrain of Himachal Pradesh, where an SUV carrying school students veered off the road and plummeted into a deep gorge in the Chopal subdivision of Shimla district. The vehicle was transporting children from a government school back to their homes when it met with the fatal accident, claiming the life of a young girl and leaving several others injured.
Accident near Jhadi village
The incident took place on Thursday evening at around 5:30 near Jhadi village. According to local authorities, the driver of the Fortuner SUV lost control of the steering wheel, causing the vehicle to skid off the road and tumble into a steep gorge approximately 200 meters deep. A police team rushed to the scene immediately after receiving information, extricated the victims from the wreckage, and shifted them to a nearby medical facility for emergency treatment.
Casualties and victims identified
Authorities identified the deceased child as 11-year-old Sakshi, a resident of Shantha village in Chopal. The seven injured students were identified as Sneha, Ankit, Anshul, Hemant, Vansansh, Hardik, and Riyansh. Most of these children hail from Shantha village and study at the Devat Government School. They were heading home from school when the tragedy struck, plunging the entire region into deep grief. Shimla Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh confirmed the incident, stating that a formal case has been registered and an investigation is underway.
Relief distribution and medical hurdles
Immediate administrative relief followed the tragedy. Chopal Sub-Divisional Magistrate Hem Chand Verma visited the site and personally disbursed an immediate financial assistance of 20,000 rupees to the deceased student's family, along with 5,000 rupees to the family of each injured child. However, the aftermath also highlighted severe infrastructure gaps at the local civil hospital. After receiving basic first aid, the injured students could not undergo X-rays locally, nor could the hospital arrange an ambulance to transfer them to Shimla. Consequently, the children had to be transported in private vehicles. District Council member Atul Sharma stepped in to shift several injured children to Shimla in his own vehicle.
