KUMUD JENAMANI
Jamshedpur, March 18: Four children were charred to death when a pile of straw they were playing caught fire accidentally.
The tragic incident took place at Gitilipi village under Jagannathpur thana area in West Singhbhum district about 120 km away from here on Monday.
Those killed were in the age group of two to five years and included a girl.
The dead children were identified as Robit Sundi, Sahil Sinku, Bhumika Sundi and Prince Chatar, all residents of the Gitilipi village.
Circumstances of the Incident
According to police, the mishap took place at about 11 am yesterday when the parents of the victims were busy working in the cultivation works.
A woman who was passing through the mishap scene had noticed the fire and had sounded an alarm, but by the time the villagers rushed to the spot it was too late.
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The woman had assumed something seriously bad behind the fire at the straw heap as the atmosphere was filled with a strong putrid smell around.
The villagers had to labour toilsomely to retrieve the charred bodies with the help of a fire brigade which had reached the spot belatedly.
Investigation Underway
Soon after the information about the tragedy reached the Jagannathpur thana, OC, Sanjay Singh followed by SDO, Mahendra Chhotan Oraon and CO, Manoj Kumar Mishra reached the spot. The police and the administrative officers soon started inspecting the cause of the fire.
A villager said a pile of straw in front of any house is a common sight in Jagannathpur like any other village in the region.
“Children do too play at the straw heaps regularly, but who knew one of the straw heaps would catch fire as there is no connectivity of power line close to such heaps,” said the villager while talking to the newsmen.
The police are, however, trying to find out the reason behind the fire and get an autopsy of the bodies after sending them to the Chaibasa Sadar Hospital morgue.
The SDO, Jagannathpur, Mahendra Chhotan Oraon has declared that the parents of those killed in the fire mishap will be given compensation as per the government’s rule.
