Thirteen women and girls died after accidentally falling down a well during marriage celebrations in northern India, police said on Thursday.
The victims were sitting on an iron slab covering the well on Wednesday when it gave way, senior police officer Akhil Kumar told reporters in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh state.
District magistrate S. Rajalingam said the well was old and could not take the weight of those sitting on the covering.
Read more: Girls in hijabs barred from university prep schools in southern India
"The victims fell down and were crushed under the debris," he said.
The women and children had gathered to take part in a marriage ritual in their village.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the accident was "heart-wrenching".
Also read: India has turned Muslims into ‘persecuted minority’: Chomsky
"The local administration is involved in all possible help," he tweeted.
Indian weddings are often grand affairs with huge numbers of guests and lavish ceremonies that run for several days.
In 2017, 24 wedding revellers were killed in the northwestern state of Rajasthan when a wall crashed down on them during a storm.
1732354127-0/Untitled-design-(3)1732354127-0-270x192.webp "north america s oldest macaroni penguins mark their 40th year")
1732344836-0/BeFunk_§_]__-(37)1732344836-0.jpg "israeli attack targets hospital killing seven medics in lebanon")
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ