At least nine children were killed after a wall of a dilapidated house collapsed on them during a religious event in Madhya Pradesh's Sagar district on Sunday. Four children sustained injuries and their condition is said to be critical.
The incident occurred when children were participating in a religious event in Shahpur and making earthen Shivlings at the premises of the Hardayal temple. The wall collapsed from a dilapidated house due to heavy rainfall, Sagar Collector Deepak Arya said. The wall was said to be 50 years old.
Several children participated in the event as their schools were closed on Sunday, which was a holiday.
A bulldozer was used to find the children trapped in the debris. The children were found and the site was cleared of debris.
"The children were sitting in a tent at the temple premises when the wall fell on them. The wall's foundation became weak due to recent rainfall. The incident occurred at 8:30 am. Nine children died after being buried under the debris of a wall in Sagar," Sagar Collector Deepak Arya said.
"Some children are injured and they are under treatment. All the debris has been removed from the site of the incident," he added.
On getting information about the accident, Rahli MLA and former state minister Gopal Bhargava reached Shahpur to take stock of the situation. District administration officials and police officers also reached the spot.
The bodies of the children were brought to Sagar District Hospital for post-mortem examination.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said he was "saddened" to hear about the deaths of the nine children and said the state government will provide financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh each to the victims' families.
"Today, I am saddened to hear the news of nine innocent children who died due to the collapse of the wall of a dilapidated house due to heavy rainfall in Shahpur of Sagar district. I have directed the district administration to provide proper treatment to the injured children," he tweeted.
"I pray to God to grant peace to the souls of the deceased children. I pray for the speedy recovery of the other children injured in the accident. I express my deepest condolences to the families who have lost their innocent children. The families of those children will be given financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh each by the government," he said.
State minister Govind Rajput told ANI, "The administration is actively working. We all are present here. The Chief Minister has announced financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh for the family of those who died and Rs 1 lakh for those injured."
"I have asked the collector Sagar to work in this regard to prevent such incidents from happening again," he said.
The incident in Sagar came a day after four children were killed after a wall of an abandoned building collapsed on them while they were returning home from school in Madhya Pradesh's Rewa district, officials said.
The Chief Minister expressed grief over the incident and announced financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the victims.
Police on Saturday arrested two owners of a building in Rewa following the wall collapse incident and registered a case against them under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Source: ANI