Patna: Fourteen people, including 10 children, have drowned in ponds and rivers across different districts of Bihar on Wednesday, with rescue efforts continuing for those still missing. The tragic incidents occurred during the Jitiya festival, a time when many take ritual baths in water bodies.
In Aurangabad district, eight children drowned in two separate incidents. The first occurred in Kushha village, Madanpur block, where four children lost their lives while bathing in a pond. The victims were identified as Sonali Kumari (15), Neelam Kumari (12), Pankaj Kumar (8), and Rakhi Kumari (15). In a second tragedy in Ithat village, Barun police station area, five children had gone to bathe in a pond. Among the dead are Anku Kumari (11), Nisha Kumari (10), Chulbuli Kumari (12), and Lajo Kumari (10). Search operations are still underway for one missing child.
In Patna’s Bihta area, four people drowned in the Son river. The body of Anjali Kumari, a young girl from Amanabad village, has been recovered, while searches are ongoing for three others, identified as Lalita Devi, Soni Kumari, and Taregni Kumari. The State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) has been deployed to assist in the rescue.
Meanwhile, five more people, including a mother and daughter, drowned in separate incidents in Motihari district. All the victims were reportedly bathing in ponds when the accidents occurred.
The drownings have caused devastation in the affected villages, with grieving families and large crowds of locals gathering at the sites. Many of the incidents are believed to have occurred when bathers stepped into deeper parts of the water, leading to the tragedies. Authorities are urging caution near water bodies as the search for the remaining missing continues.
