Mortal remains of J&K accident victims from Kerala cremated

Palakkad (Ker), Dec 8 (PTI) Hundreds of people thronged Chittoor village in this north Kerala district on Friday to pay homage to four youths who had died in a car accident in Jammu and Kashmir on December 5.

The mortal remains of Sudesh, Anil, Rahul and Vignesh, who belonged to the village, were brought to the state in a flight in the early hours of the day.

The bodies were later kept for public homage at a school where a large number of people from various walks of life gathered to pay their last respects in the morning.

The funeral was held at a public crematorium here later in the day.

The fatal accident occurred when a tourist group, which the four were a part of, was returning to Srinagar from Leh in two cabs.

As the road was slippery due to snow, the driver of the cab carrying seven of the 13 tourists lost control at a turn near Zojila Pass on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway and fell into a ravine.

Apart from the four men from Kerala, the cab driver — who hailed from Jammu and Kashmir’s Ganderbal district — also died.

The mortal remains of the youths were brought back to Kerala at the state government’s expense.

According to residents of Chittoor, where all 13 members of the tour group hail from, the deceased were hardworking youth who used often go on such trips.