Two injured are admitted at the Paro hospital for minor injuries
Accident: A 62 year-old Indian tourist from Kolkata, West Bengal died on impact when the vehicle she was traveling in veered off about 75 metres below the road at Chelela yesterday afternoon.
Two others, a 37-year-old woman and a 35-year-old man, from Kolkata sustained minor injuries. They are admitted at the Paro hospital.
The woman is the deceased’s daughter and is said to be in a state of shock.
An official from Paro hospital said that the injured tourists would be discharged by tomorrow. He said that the injured sustained cut injuries on the head and cheeks. “The man also complained of chest and back pain, which is why he is kept under observation,” the health official said. “The body of the deceased is kept at the mortuary and it will be handed to the family upon completion of the formalities.”
Paro hospital officials said that the deceased and the injured tourists were brought to the hospital around 4 pm yesterday. The doctor who attended the deceased said that the woman was brought dead.
“She had a cut on her left eyebrows,” the doctor said. “She could have died from internal injuries as no other injuries were found on the body.”
Health officials said that the tourists had come through an Indian travel agency as part of a group. The 21 tourists from West Bengal travelled in an Indian registered bus.
Sources said that the accident occurred when the driver tried to reverse the bus after they had stopped for sightseeing at Chelela. Five tourists and the driver were in the bus when the rest had stepped out for sightseeing at Chelela.
Chelela, the highest pass between Paro and Haa, is a major tourist hotspot.
Visitors from India, Maldives and Bangladesh are considered as regional tourists.
They are exempt from the minimum daily tariff of USD 250 and 200 during the
peak and lean seasons that the international tourists pay to visit Bhutan. They need not route through local tour operators unlike the tariff paying tourists.
Bhutan recorded a total of 66,832 regional visitors as of August 31, records with Tourism Council of Bhutan show. This is an increase of 77.25 percent compared to the same period last year.
Kinga Dema