Shimla, Sep 30 (UNI) Two participants of the 8th Maruti Suzuki Raid de Himalayas Rally were injured when their Swift car went off the road near Neerath in Shimla district of Himachal Pradesh here this afternoon.

The organisers said that the injured participants were identified as as Vijayan and Parmeshwaram, who bowed out of the rally besides five vehicles that checked out due to mechanical faults.

Earlier, the rally was flagged from Peterhoff, near here, by State Bank of India DGM Raj Kunwar.

The seven-day event would have two independent race formats concurrently, featuring twenty-nine cars and 32 motorcycles in the ''extreme category'' and 31 vehicles in the ''reliability trial''.

The rally, jointly organised by Department of Youth Services and Sports and the Himalayan Motorsport Association (MTA), would traverse through Manali, Kaza, Dhankar, Patsio and Leh before coming to end at Manali on October six.

Four women drivers are in the fray in the four-wheel category besides five foreign teams with a total of 66 in this category, 36 each in the Reliability Trial and two-wheel categories.

The rally would terminate at Manali on October six and the prize distribution ceremony would be held the following day.

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