40 die as bus falls into gorge in India

At least 40 people have died when a bus fell into a gorge in the Indian hill state of Uttarakhand, police say.

At least 40 people have died when a bus fell into a gorge in the Indian hill state of Uttarakhand.

Sunday's accident took place in Dhumakot area of Pauri Gaehwal district, police official Sanjay Singh told dpa.

At least 11 people are injured, he says.

Rescue work is being hampered by poor weather. A team of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and local police are engaged in the rescue operations

"Rescue operations are on and we are still not sure about the final count of dead bodies," said a police official, who declined to be identified since he was not authorised to speak to the media.

"It was raining, these are narrow, hilly roads and the bus driver lost control."

The bus was carrying daily commuters.

India has the world's deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed annually. Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and ageing vehicles.