5 children among 8 dead in Daksum accident

Anantnag, July 27: Eight members of two families including five children died in an accident in Arshan Valley in Daksum, some 47 km from south Kashmir’s Anantnag town on Saturday.

The families were travelling from Kishtwar via Sinthan Top to Marwa when the car they were travelling in crashed after plummeting around 300 feet into a gorge.

“They all died on the spot,” Tehsildar Larnoo, Syed Muiz Qadri said.

He said that a policeman, two women, and five children were among the dead. According to the official, the children were aged between 6 and 16.

The accident occurred at around 1 pm near Arshan, Daksum, known for its stunning beauty and trekking expeditions.

“The car crashed down on the boulders, leaving no survivors,” another official said.

He said that following the accident, a team was immediately sent to the spot and launched a rescue operation.

The official said that bodies were shifted to Sub District Hospital Kokernag for medico-legal formalities before sending them to their native village for the last rites.

He identified the dead as Imtiyaz Rather, son of Ghulam Rasool, his wife Afroza Begum, and three children - Areeba Imtiyaz, 12, Aniya Jan, 10, and Abaan Imtiyaz, 6, Reshma, wife of Majid Ahmad and her two sons Mushail Majid, 16, and Musiab Majid, 8, and all residents of Kishtwar.

Rather was working in the Jammu and Kashmir Police.