APD | Eight Indians die of suffocation in a Nepal hotel

By APD writer Rishika Chauhan

New Delhi, Jan. 23 (APD) - Eight Indians, on a holiday in Nepal, suffocated to death in their mountain resort due to carbon monoxide emanating from a gas heater on Tuesday.

The eight belonged to the province of Kerala. A media report quoted police spokesperson Shailesh Thapa Chettri explaining, “They were found unconscious this Tuesday morning and airlifted to Kathmandu, but died during treatment. We suspect they died of suffocation, but autopsy reports will confirm the cause.”

The area of the resort was at an altitude of around 2500 meters above sea level. Using gas heaters is a common practice, however, the guests suffocated because of poor ventilation. The windows and doors of the room where the guests were staying were closed.

Following the news, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar tweeted, “Deeply distressed by the tragic news of the passing away of eight Indian tourists in Nepal.”

While Kerala’s chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan shared “deep grief” over the mishap. V Muraleedharan, the Minister of State for External Affairs, informed that the officials in the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu were working towards bringing the bodies back to India as soon as possible.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)