Three Army personnel, including a junior commissioned officer, were killed when their vehicle skidded off the road and plunged into a 500-metre deep gorge in Jammu and Kashmir's Ramban district on Sunday, officials said.
The Army truck was part of a convoy moving from Jammu to Srinagar along National Highway 44. The accident occurred near Battery Chashma at around 11.30 am, the officials said.
They said a joint rescue operation was launched immediately by Army, police, State Disaster Response Force and local volunteers.
Three soldiers travelling in the vehicle were found dead on the spot.
The deceased were identified as Naib-Subedar Sujeet Kumar, driver Amit Kumar and sepoy Man Bahadur, said officials, who added that their bodies were retrieved from the gorge after several hours of hectic efforts.
The crash has reduced the vehicle into a mangled heap of metal, they said.
Confirming the death of the JCO and two soldiers, Ramban senior superintendent of police Kulbir Singh said preliminary investigation suggested that the accident was caused by a technical glitch in the vehicle and an investigation was underway to ascertain the exact reason.
Army's northern command paid tribute to the deceased personnel and extended its condolences to the bereaved families.
"An Army vehicle moving as part of routine convoy on May 4 slid off the road and fell into a gorge near Ramban. All three Army personnel travelling in the vehicle succumbed to the injuries in this tragic accident," the Northern Command said in a post on microblogging site X, adding that it stands firm with the bereaved families in this hour of grief.