4 killed as car plunges into 600-metre-deep gorge near Mussoorie in Uttarakhand

A car carrying four people plunged hundreds of feet into a deep gorge near Mussoorie in Uttarakhand on Tuesday, leaving all four occupants feared dead, officials said.

Police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel and 108 ambulance teams rushed to the spot after receiving reports of the crash. The rescue operation was hampered by the remote terrain and dense vegetation in the gorge.

The SDRF deployed teams down the steep slope to reach the wreckage and recover the victims. Administrative officials were also present at the site to supervise the operation.

Mussoorie police said preliminary information indicated that all four occupants had died in the crash. The vehicle reportedly fell into a gorge about 600 metres deep. Recovery operations and legal formalities were still underway.

70-YEAR-OLD CYCLIST KILLED IN UP HIT-AND-RUN

In a separate incident, a 70-year-old cyclist was killed in Uttar Pradesh's Bijnor district after being struck by a speeding gravel-laden dumper truck, police said.

The victim was returning home with milk from a nearby village and was riding along the edge of the road when the truck hit him from behind. The impact was severe, and he died at the scene, according to local residents.

Witnesses said the truck driver abandoned the vehicle and fled immediately after the collision. Villagers gathered at the site and described the deceased as a simple, well-known local resident who regularly used a bicycle for daily errands.

Police have launched a search for the absconding driver and are investigating the circumstances of the crash. Locals alleged that speeding heavy vehicles have been a recurring safety problem on the route, which is frequently used by villagers, farmers, students and elderly residents.