Srinagar : At least 40 passengers were killed in Uttarakhand when their bus fell into a gorge on Sunday morning, NDTV reported.

Four of them were critically injured in the accident which happened on the Pipali-Bhoan motorway in Pauri Garhwal’s Nainidanda block.

The police and a team of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are facilitating rescue operations.

According to reports, about 45 passengers were travelling in the mini bus, which was headed for Ramnagar from Bhoan.

While the reason for the accident and the exact number of travellers isn’t known yet, most of the passengers died instantly when the bus plunged into the gorge.

The injured were rushed to the hospital. The number of casualties is expected to rise, said Garhwal commissioner Dilip Jawalkar.