A seven-year-old girl learning to ride bicycle drowned after accidentally falling into a pond at Hassanpur village in Kharar subdivision of Mohali district on Tuesday.
Identified as Harman Kaur, she is survived by her father Ravinder Singh, an army soldier posted near Baramulla in Kashmir, mother and two siblings.
The mishap took place around 3:15pm. A girl standing nearby raised the alarm and villagers who rushed there called police around 3:35pm.
Immediate rescue operation was initiated in presence of subdivisional magistrate Himanshu Jain. Swimmers from Morinda and other nearby villages were called, and a motor pump was also installed to drain the pond. In the meantime, a National Disaster Response Force team was also called by the administration as backup, and a green passage was provided to facilitate its quick movement.
However, around 5pm, swimmers recovered the girl’s body from the pond. She was declared dead on being taken to the civil hospital.
Deputy commissioner Girish Dayalan said the Punjab chief minister has announced ₹2-lakh ex gratia for the girl’s family. Her body will be handed over to them in the morning.