A woman was killed and six other persons were injured when a ropeway trolley crashed while descending from a hilltop temple in Chhattisgarh's Mahasamund district on Sunday, officials said.
The accident occurred shortly after 10 am when the trolley's cable snapped as it was bringing down seven passengers from the hilltop, Bagbahra Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Namita Markole said.
Earlier, eight persons were reported to be in the trolley.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai expressed grief over the incident and ordered a detailed investigation into it.
The trolley plunged from a height of 200 to 300 feet, as per officials.
The ropeway service is commonly used by devotees to reach near the temple, located on the hilltop at an elevation of about 1,100 feet. Visitors can also access the shrine by climbing nearly 900 steps.
The SDM said the victims had arrived there to offer prayers at the Khallari Mata temple, located on a hill at Khallari (Bhimkhoj) village in the Bagbahra tehsil, during the ongoing nine-day Navratri festival.
A woman, identified as Ayushi Satkar (28) from Raipur, died on the spot, while six others, including her husband Rishabh Dhavre (29) and another minor relative Chhayansh Dhavre (16), sustained injuries, she said.
The other injured persons have been identified as Govind Swami (47), Namita Swami (48), and minors Kushmita Swami (10) and Manshvi Godaria (12), the official said.
The six injured persons were shifted to a nearby hospital, from where four of them were referred to Raipur for further medication, she added.
Following the incident, another trolley carrying around 10 passengers, which had just begun ascending, was immediately brought back to the base.
Though passengers in that cable car experienced a strong jolt, no major injuries were reported, officials said.
Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the accident, they said.
CM Sai, in a post on X, said the incident was extremely tragic and painful. He condoled the woman's death in the accident and prayed for strength for her family.
"As soon as information about the accident was received, necessary instructions were issued to the officials concerned to ensure proper treatment for the injured. A detailed inquiry into the incident will be conducted, and those found responsible will not be spared. I pray to Khallari Mata for the speedy recovery of all the injured devotees," he added.
In a similar incident last year, a BJP leader sustained injuries when a ropeway trolley he was travelling in crashed from a low height near the Bamleshwari Devi hill shrine in the state's Rajnandgaon district.
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