Four BSF jawans on poll duty die, dozens injured in road mishap in J&K’s Budgam

Srinagar: At least four paramilitary Border Security Force (BSF) personnel died, and dozens more were injured after a bus they were travelling in skidded off the road and plunged into a gorge in central Kashmir’s Budgam district on Friday.

The bus, which was engaged in election duty, was carrying a total of 35 BSF personnel when it skidded off road in the Brell Waterhail area of Budgam and fell into a deep gorge, an official said. In the incident four BSF jawans died while more than two dozen were injured.

Soon after the incident, reports said, police, administration and local volunteers rushed to the spot and pulled the injured BSF personnel from the bus.

Around 30 injured were shifted to various medical facilities in Budgam and Srinagar, where condition of six among them is stated to be critical. In addition to the injured BSF personnel, a civilian driver also suffered injuries in the incident.

In the purported videos of the incident which surfaced on social media, locals can be seen assisting in rescuing the injured.

The tragic incident comes three days after an army vehicle slipped off the road and fell into a deep gorge in border Rajouri district of Jammu region in which four soldiers were injured.

26 Assembly constituencies - 15 in Kashmir and 11 in Jammu - in the districts of Ganderbal, Srinagar, Budgam, Reasi, Rajouri, and Poonch are scheduled to go to polls in the second phase of three phase elections on September 25.