Five women were buried under a mound of earth after the debris from a hill fell on them while they were digging soil in the Govind Pashu Vihar National Park and Sanctuary area of Mori tehsil in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand on Wednesday morning, police said.
One of the women died on the way while four others were taken to a primary healthcare facility in Mori from where three injured were airlifted to Dehradun for further treatment in view of their serious health condition, said an official at the district disaster control room.
The incident took place around 7.30am. The women belonged to Fitadi village.
After being alerted about the incident, the teams of police, state disaster response force and revenue department rushed to the spot. However, the villagers had already taken out the victims trapped under the debris.
While they were being taken to the healthcare facility, one of the women in critical condition, identified as Suri Devi (35) died. Those injured have been identified as Sushila Devi (38), Kasturi (37) Bipina Devi (32) and Rajendri.
“According to the preliminary report with us, the victims were working under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. However, the same can only be confirmed after we receive a final written report,” said Arvind, an official at the district disaster control room.