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Six children drowned while taking a bath in a temporary pond at Sector 111 in Bajghera area in Gurgaon Sunday. Police and district administration officials said the bodies were retrieved after a search operation that lasted over four hours.
Police identified the children as Deva (11), Durgesh, Ajit, Rahul, Piyush and Varun. Police said Durgesh and Ajit are brothers.
According to police, the children, all residents of Shankar Vihar Colony, had gone to take a bath in the pond around 3 pm. “Initial information was that six children have drowned. Six bodies have been recovered. All are aged between 8 and 13 years. The bodies have been sent to civil hospital. We will still make announcements in the local area to check if any more children are missing. A State Disaster Response Force team and divers are stationed here, and a National Disaster Response Force team is also on the way. If required, a combing operation will be initiated again and water will be drained out from the pits,” said Gurgaon Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav.
Earlier in the evening, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar tweeted, “Received heartbreaking news of some children drowning in a pond filled with rainwater in sector 111 in Gurugram. Rescue teams are still searching for the children. My condolences to the children and their parents.”
The DC said as per preliminary information, rainwater had collected in an area of about 5-7 acres which has several pits and the children had gone there to take a bath. “An enquiry will be conducted and legal action will be taken, if required. The Chief Minister has announced compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the deceased… This is a tragic incident. In future, our endeavour will be to identify such temporary ponds and drain their water,” said DC.
On if the area where the incident took place was a construction site of a real estate project, Yadav said, “Police will conduct a probe to look into these aspects and action shall be taken if anyone’s negligence is found.”
‘He had gone out to play’ Surjit, Deva’s uncle, said his nephew had been studying in class 6. “He said he was going out to play with some friends. Later, we got to know that they had all gone for a bath in a pond and drowned there. When we reached, the slippers of seven children were found near the pond and the children were missing. Deva’s body was the first to be pulled put… as far as I am aware, the children had come here for a bath for the first time.”
Suraj Singh said, “My nephews Durgesh and Ajit were missing. I was on duty when I heard the news. We are all devastated.” Police said one of the boys who had gone along had noticed the children drowning and informed a security guard, who informed police. After the incident was reported, officials from Bajghera police station, fire department, SDRF and civil defence volunteers rushed to the spot.
Deepak Saharan, DCP West, Gurgaon, said, “The clothes and slippers of the six children were found near the pond. One body was recovered earlier in the evening and after a search operation, five more bodies were found.”
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