Six Die In Janmashtami Celebrations In Ramanthapur

A tragic incident marred Janmashtami celebrations in Gokhale Nagar, Ramanthapur, at midnight yesterday, leaving six people dead and four others injured after a chariot came into contact with live electric wires.

The mishap occurred when a vehicle towing a decorated chariot carrying an idol of Lord Krishna broke down. As a group of young men attempted to manually push the chariot, it allegedly touched the overhead power lines, resulting in electrocution.

The deceased have been identified as Krishna Yadav (21), Suresh Yadav (34), Srikanth Reddy (35), Rudra Vikas (39), Rajendra Reddy (15) and Ganesh (21).

Reports said that nine other people suffered electric shocks.

Local residents rushed all the victims to nearby hospitals. While five were declared brought dead, Ganesh, a resident of Amberpet, succumbed to his injuries at Osmania General Hospital this afternoon. Several others are undergoing treatment at a private hospital and are reported to be in stable condition.

IT and Industries Minister Sridhar Babu expressed shock over the incident and extended his condolences to the bereaved families. He visited Gandhi Hospital to console them and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the family of each of the deceased. He also promised that the government would bear the medical expenses of the injured.

"This incident is extremely tragic and unfortunate. It is particularly distressing that the mishap occurred just 100 metres before the conclusion of the Shobha Yatra. Preliminary reports suggest that the accident was caused by live current passing through a cable wire," he said.

The minister added that a detailed inquiry under the district Collector's supervision had been ordered, and that strict action would be taken against those found responsible.