Shimla, Sep 13 - Nine bodies were fished out of a rain-swollen river in Himachal Pradesh Sunday, more than a day after a car plunged into it, police said.

All the nine people were travelling in a Scorpio when their vehicle fell into the Beas river near Mandi town during the wee hours of Saturday.

'The bodies were brought out of the river this (Sunday) morning. The rescue operation continued for more than 24 hours,' police officer Shreshta Thakur told IANS.

'This (Sunday) morning, the divers were able to trace the vehicle as the river current slackened due to less rain in the area,' she said.

Thakur said the victims were trapped in the vehicle that got stuck in the silt on the bottom of the river.

The nine men belonged to Hamirpur town in Himachal Pradesh. They were on their way to Manikaran Sahib in Kullu district.