4 of family, including two minors, drown in field pond in Nuh’s Salaheri

Heavy rain left Salaheri’s low-lying fields inundated; locals later found tubs and clothes at the spot before police arrived and recovered the victims’ bodies.

Four members of a family, including two minors, drowned in a pond dug in an agricultural field in Nuh district’s Salaheri village, police said on Sunday. The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon, about 500 metres from their home.

Police said the victims, missing since 12.30pm, were identified as Jamshida, Madina and their daughters Sumaiya and Sofia; no foul play is suspected at this stage. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Inspector Kuldeep Singh, station house officer (SHO) of Sadar police station, said two women and their daughters had gone to the field to wash clothes, a common practice among locals. “While the women were washing their clothes, it is suspected that one of the girls accompanying them had accidentally slipped and fallen straight into the waterlogged field,” Singh said.

Preliminary investigation suggested that the others jumped into the water, several feet deep, to save the child but failed to make it out. Officials noted that heavy rain three weeks ago had left the low-lying area inundated. A local farmer, identified as Aas Mohammed, had dug the pond near the wetland, police said, adding that there were no fencing around the area.

“The family members of the women and children said they had not heard from them after they went out around 12.30pm. In the evening, a few locals first noticed empty tubs and clothes lying on the field,” Singh said. By the time police reached the spot, locals had already retrieved the bodies.

The deceased were identified as Jamshida, 38, her sister-in-law Madina, 35, and their daughters Sumaiya, 10, and Sofia, 11, all residents of Salaheri. Police said they do not suspect foul play at this stage. “The autopsy was conducted under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). No FIR has been registered yet, and further action will be taken based on autopsy findings,” Singh said.