KATHMANDU, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- A senior government official died after a jeep he was traveling in plunged down into the Trishuli River in Dhading District of Central Nepal on Saturday, authorities said.

Local Police Officer Purna Lama confirmed that the dead body of Ramananda Yadav, secretary of the Ministry of Irrigation, was recovered from the crash site during the rescue operation.

"We recovered the dead body of Secretary Yadav, and two others traveling along with Yadav are still missing. The rescue operation is underway," Lama told media.

Yadav, his son Sanjya Yadav and an adolescent girl had gone missing after the jeep en route to the capital of Kathmandu from Narayangadh veered off the Prithvi Highway at Salanghat area of Dhading. The police have rescued the injured jeep driver from the crash site.

Road mishaps are frequent in the Himalayan nation and occur mostly due to poor road conditions and reckless driving, officials said.