British tourist dies after fall while trekking with friend in Himalayas
A British tourist has died in northern India after falling while trekking with a friend in the Himalayas.
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The Himachal Pradesh State Disaster Response Force received a call for rescue at 6pm on Sunday after a British tourist injured himself while trekking near the town of Thathri in the western part of the Himalayas.
A rescue team of 10 personnel was deployed at 6.30pm, but the pair could not be reached before 10.30pm due to "extremely difficult terrain".
"The team began their trek from Thathri Power Project and, upon reaching Dritto Cafe, was informed that the victims were located 4km further uphill in extremely difficult terrain," the disaster response force said on Tuesday.
"After four hours of trekking, the team located the victims at 10.30pm with one trekker in a critical condition.
"They secured the critical trekker on to a stretcher and began the challenging descent along with his co-trekker."
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The injured trekker was taken to hospital for medical treatment, but was pronounced dead upon arrival, the force added.
The two British men arrived in the town of Dharamshala on February 14 and left for a trek from Dharamkot to Triund on Sunday, according to The Times of India.
One of them is understood to have fallen after crossing Triund during their descent towards Thathri.
The Kangra administration had enforced a ban on high-altitude trekking in the winter, which the two tourists were unaware of.
The British victim has yet to be formally identified.
A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said on Wednesday: "We are supporting the family of a British man who has died in India and are in contact with the local authorities."