Una – A tragic accident claimed the lives of 11 people on Sunday when an Innova car was swept away by the strong current of the Jejon Khadd on the Tahliwal-Mahilpur road. The car, carrying 12 members from three families of Dehlan and Bhatoli villages, was on its way to a wedding in Mehrowal village when caught in the overflowing ravine. Eleven people died in the incident, while one young man, Deepak, survived and has been hospitalized.
The victims were identified as Surjit Singh (55), his wife Paramjit Kaur (50), their sons Gagandeep (19) and Deepak (22), Surjit’s brother Ramswaroop, his wife Palwinder Kaur, their son Nitin, and Surjit’s sister-in-law Sheenu Devi along with her children Harshit, Bhavna, and Mannat. Kulwinder Kumar, a resident of Dehlan, drove the car.
The families were en route to a wedding when they encountered the flooded ravine on the Himachal-Punjab border. Initially hesitant, they decided to cross after seeing other vehicles make it through. However, the swift current quickly overwhelmed the car, dragging it 300 meters downstream. Despite rescue efforts by local residents using a JCB machine, only Deepak was pulled out alive. Nine bodies were recovered shortly after, while the search for the remaining two continued into the evening.
Lower Dehlan Panchayat Pradhan Rajendra Kumar confirmed that Ramswaroop and his sister-in-law Sheenu Devi were still missing until late afternoon. The news of the accident has cast a pall of grief over Dehlan and Bhatoli villages.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed deep sorrow over the incident, offering condolences to the affected families and praying for the peace of the departed souls. “This is a tragic loss for the entire community,” he said. Deputy Commissioner Una Jatin Lal also expressed his condolences, noting that local administration has been dispatched to assist in the rescue efforts, despite the incident occurring in Punjab.
