Seven persons were killed and five others injured when a jeep met with an accident at Thulikhola along the Bagarkot-Bhagheshwor road section in the district on Wednesday. 

The Bolero jeep with the registration number Se 1 Ja 833 swerved off the road and plunged about 130 metres at around noon. The ill-fated vehicle was en route from Bhageshwor to Dadeldhura. There were 12 people on board when the accident occurred.

Police have identified the deceased as Laxman Bhatta, Jayananda Bhatta, Debakar Pandey, Padam Bahadur Malla, Ganesh Sarki, Kamdev Bhatta and Narapati Pandey. All the deceased are from Bhageshwor VDC. Five persons died on the spot while two succumbed to injuries at Dadeldhura Sub-regional Hospital. According to DSP Prem Bahadur Shahi, critically injured Madan Singh Saud has been referred to Nepalgunj while four others are receiving treatment at Dadeldhura Sub-regional Hospital. 

The incident site is about 5 kilometres from the district headquarters. Security personnel and locals had immediately reached the site and rescued the victims. 

The accident took place due to the driver’s negligence, said police. Driver Sher Bahadur Khadayat has sustained minor injuries. 

Ugratara Bus Entrepreneurs’ Committee has been operating jeep services on various routes in the district. People have long been complaining that jeeps operating on these routes often carry passengers beyond their capacity.