Tragic Bus Crash Claims 25 Indian Pilgrims in Nepal

An Indian tourist bus plunged into the Marsyangdi River in Nepal, killing 25 Indian pilgrims. The bus was retrieved using cranes, causing a four-hour road closure. Sixteen others were injured, some critically. The accident's cause remains unknown, and the bodies have been returned to Maharashtra, India.

An Indian tourist bus that plunged into the Marsyangdi River in central Nepal last week, resulting in the deaths of 25 Indian pilgrims, was retrieved on Monday, authorities confirmed.

The bus, registered in Uttar Pradesh, was pulled out using a crane, which led to the temporary closure of the Mugling-Anbukhaireni road section of the national highway for four hours on Monday morning, according to Deputy Spokesperson of the Armed Police Force, Shailendra Thapa.

The bus veered off the highway and fell into the Marsyangdi River in the Abu Khaireni area of Tanahun district in Gandaki province last Friday. The accident, which killed 25 pilgrims from Maharashtra and the driver and his assistant from Uttar Pradesh, also left 16 others injured.

Initially, one crane was used to pull the bus out, but a second crane was later employed to complete the task. Passengers were stranded on the highway, but the road section reopened by evening once the bus was retrieved.

The exact cause of the accident remains unknown. The 27 deceased and injured individuals were part of a group of 104 pilgrims visiting Nepal in three buses.

Post-mortem examinations of the deceased were conducted at a hospital in Bagmati province on Saturday, and an Indian Air Force military transport aircraft subsequently brought the bodies of 25 pilgrims back to Maharashtra's Jalgaon.

The 16 rescued passengers are receiving treatment at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital.

(With inputs from agencies.)