Jammu, May 20 (IANS) Seventeen people were killed and 27 injured when a bus going to the Kashmir Valley fell into a deep gorge in the Jammu region Tuesday, an official said.

The accident occurred when the bus driver lost control at Digdol on the Jammu-Srinagar highway in Ramban district, 170 km from Jammu, an official told IANS here.

“Seventeen passengers have died so far, while 27 are injured,” the official said, adding the seriously injured were being air-lifted via helicopters to Jammu.

Most of the passengers in the bus were youth going to the Kashmir Valley from Poonch and Rajouri districts for a recruitment rally. A few other passengers were from Gujarat.

Army personnel posted in the area are assisting the civil administration in relief and rescue operations, the official added.