At least 16 dead as bus plunges into river

A crowded bus veered off a steep mountain road and fell into a river in India’s portion of Kashmir today, killing at least 16 people and injuring 19 others, police said.

Witnesses said they saw the bus hit a van while negotiating a sharp turn and then plunge into the river.

Villagers rescued injured passengers but it was feared the death toll would climb because some passengers may have been washed away by the fast current of the Chenab river.

The bus had left Doda, 75 miles north-east of Jammu, en route to Kishtwar, about 30 minutes before the accident.