The heartbreaking landslip in Himachal Pradesh’s Bilaspur district has seen the death toll climb to 16. A private bus was tragically buried under a massive slide on Tuesday evening. On Wednesday morning, rescuers recovered the body of a child, adding to the grim count.
Search and rescue operations continued intensely on Wednesday, striving to locate individuals trapped beneath the earth. A significant section of the mountain collapsed onto the moving bus in the Bhalughat area near Berthin at approximately 6:40 p.m. on Tuesday, leading to the disaster.
Bilaspur SP Sandeep Dhawal confirmed, “The death toll has increased to 16 with the recovery of one more body today.”
Operations, which had been suspended late Tuesday night due to treacherous conditions like poor visibility and ongoing mudslides, restarted with full force on Wednesday. Two National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, alongside local volunteers, police, home guards, and fire personnel, are relentlessly working at the site.
A rescue operation is in progress after a landslip tragically struck a private bus in Bilaspur district, Himachal Pradesh, on October 8, 2025. | Photo Credit: PTI
Manual search efforts are actively continuing, with dog squads deployed to help locate victims. Heavy machinery is also on site to clear large rocks, as confirmed by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) officials.
People navigate past the severely damaged remnants of a bus submerged in debris in Bilaspur. | Photo Credit: PTI
Authorities have identified the deceased as Naksh, Aarav, Sanjeev, Vimla, Kamlesh, Kanta Devi, Anjana, Bakshi Ram, Narender Sharma, Krishan Lal, Chuni Lal, Rajnish, Sonu, Sharif Khan, and Praveen Kumar. The identity of the child recovered on Wednesday morning is still pending.
Among the victims are four members of a single family: the wives of two brothers and two children belonging to one of the siblings. They were on their way home after attending a family event.
Tragically, the other two children from the family, Arushi and Shaurya, were successfully rescued and have since been discharged and sent home after receiving medical attention at AIIMS Bilaspur.
Raj Kumar, father of Arushi and Shaurya, shared his profound grief: “My wife and two children, and my brother’s wife and their two children, were returning home from a function when the tragedy struck. Only my children are alive now.”
Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri visited the accident site Tuesday night to oversee rescue efforts and offer condolences to the affected families. He stated, “The region has been experiencing rainfall for the past two days, and it is clear that the accident occurred due to the mountain sliding after heavy downpour. A magisterial inquiry into the incident has been ordered.”
He further reflected, “Himachal is a hilly state with young mountains, where extensive construction of roads, bridges, and tunnels is underway. Therefore, there is a crucial need to assess the sustainability of our current development model.” He also noted that the state has incurred losses totaling ₹20,000 crore from various natural disasters since 2023.
The area has been subjected to continuous, heavy rainfall since Monday, which has destabilized the already fragile mountain slopes.
High-ranking officials, including President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Ministers Amit Shah and J P Nadda, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, have expressed their deep condolences over the loss of lives in this unfortunate incident.
Prime Minister Modi announced a compensation of ₹2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of each person who died, and ₹50,000 for those injured.
In a statement, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu conveyed his sorrow over the incident and instructed officials on Tuesday night to accelerate the ongoing rescue operations.