After a government roadways bus had slipped into a 500 foot deep valley, there were at least 28 people who were killed and five others were injured on the night of Monday, in Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh.

The corpses of 28 people were recovered from the wreckage as five others were recued out alive and immediately hospitalized according tot the report from Deputy Commissioned K R Bharti on Tuesday.

The bus, capable of carrying 42, was going from Palampur to Asha Puri which is renowned for the shrine on the hill top carrying more than the capacity as complained by a survivor.

Several of the people on the bus had also gotten down at the Makol village just a while before the accidents. Makol village was just a few kilometers away from the site of the accident.

Indian Army at Palampur was notified of the accident 250 km from the accident zone for its assistance in the rescue operations. The accident spot was a thick forest and trecherous.

Bharti specualted that the driver could have been adjusting his seat as the accident occurred. A magisterial probe into the issue was ordered to investigate the accident.

A large number of people were members of a closely knit family. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has offered his condolences for the victims the accident.

The frequency of the accidents is increasing to an alarming rate with this being the second such major one in less than a month. In the last accident on Aug 11 there were at least 53 people who died while 46 others were left injured after a bus fell into a 300 feet deep gorge.

(AW- Anil)