Bhagalpur, Sep 21 (PTI) Six children drowned while bathing in a pond in Bihar’s Bhagalpur district on Monday, police said.
Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary expressed grief over the incident and announced an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased children, according to a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO).
The incident occurred around 10.30 am in Taraita Bahiyar in the Sultanganj police station area when the children had gone for a ritual bath on the occasion of the Karma-Dharma festival, a senior police officer said.
The deceased were identified as Pooja Kumari (13), Rahul Kumar (14), Vikas Kumar (13), Ayush Kumar (12), Meenakshi Kumari alias Minki (12) and Jyoti Kumari (14), the officer said.
“Locals claimed that one of the children waded into deep water and the others tried to rescue him. But all six drowned. The children were taken out of the pond and sent to the Sultanganj Referral Hospital, where doctors declared them dead,” he said.
Sultanganj Circle Officer Raman Kumar said the bereaved families would be provided all possible assistance. PTI CORR PKD SOM
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.