Mountaineer in ICU after 100-feet fall at Sinhagad

Updated on: 24 January,2011 08:18 AM IST |
Salil Urunkar |

20-yr-old rescued from valley by members of his adventure group

20-yr-old rescued from valley by members of his adventure group

A 20-year oldu00a0man from Mumbai suffered serious head injuries when he fell 100 feet into a valley at Sinhagad on Saturday afternoon.

Identified as Nilesh Ovhal, a resident of Dombivali, the man had come from Mumbai to the fort near the city with a mountaineering group.

The police came to know of the incident only after Ovhal had been rescued by members of his team and shifted to a hospital in Deccan.

Ovhal received head injures and was undergoing treatment in the ICU of the hospital.

A member of the Panvel-based Durga Mitra Sanstha, the mountaineering group to which Ovhal belongs, said, "Ovhal joined the group about a year ago. On Saturday we did the valley crossing programme and then went to Jhunjar Kada. Ovhal lost his balance and fell 100 feet down into the valley."

A friend of Ovhal who gave his name as Patil said, "Ovhal is the sole steady breadwinner in his family and earns money from mountaineering activities at forts. He is a Std IV pass and his elder brother is a labourer, while his mother is a housewife and father is unemployed."

Assistant Police Inspector Devendrasinh Thakur, the investigating officer in the case, said, "Ovhal is not in a position to give a statement but we have recorded the statement of his brother. According to his brother, Ovhal had come for trekking and he lost his balance when he was on the Jhunjar Kada."