26 devotees killed, several injured as tractor-trolley falls in pond near Kanpur

New Delhi: At least 26 people were killed and several seriously injured when a tractor-trolley carrying devotees overturned and fell into a pond near a village in Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur district on Saturday evening.

Police say that most of the dead are women and children and the death toll is expected to rise.
A senior police official said that the incident took place near Bhadeuna village under senior police station limits.

The tractor-trolley, carrying around 50 people, was on its way to Ghatampur when the passengers attended the “mandan” ceremony at the Chandrika Devi temple in Fatehpur, he said.
He added that more than a dozen people died on the spot.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath have expressed grief over the incident.
Worried about the tractor-trolley accident in Kanpur.

My thoughts are with all those who have lost loved ones. Praying with the wounded. Modi said in a tweet that the local administration is providing all possible help to the victims.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has sent ministers Rakesh Sachin and Ajit Pal to the accident site to speed up rescue operations.
An eyewitness told reporters that he and others rushed to the scene after hearing men, women and children screaming for help.

Locals immediately jumped into the water and somehow managed to pull out the victims, some of whom were already dead, he said.

He added that the injured were taken to Community Health Center (CHC) in Bhetargaon, where some of them were declared brought dead.
Principal of GSVM Medical College Sanjay Kala told reporters that several injured have been referred to Lala Lajpat Rai (LLR) Hospital.

According to officials, the injured were first rushed to Bhetargaon CHC in ambulances arranged by the police and more than a dozen people were declared dead at the centre.

Recently, 10 people were killed and 37 injured when the tractor-trolley they were traveling in overturned in a similar accident on the outskirts of the state capital.