Five electrocuted in Ghaziabad

State power officials said a loose electrical wire at the grocery shop and waterlogging in the area together led to the incident.

Three minor girls were electrocuted and two others who tried to save them also died near a grocery shop in Ghaziabad’s Rakesh Marg locality on Wednesday morning.

The shop’s owner, Sushil Kumar, a resident of Dadri in Gautam Budh Nagar is at large, and though the police have not received a complaint from any of the families, they are still on the hunt for him. (Photo by Sakib Ali /Hindustan Times)

State power officials said a loose electrical wire at the grocery shop and waterlogging in the area together led to the incident.

The shop’s owner, Sushil Kumar, a resident of Dadri in Gautam Budh Nagar is at large, and though the police have not received a complaint from any of the families, they are still on the hunt for him.

Residents said the three girls, Surbhi Paswan (4), Khushi Kumari (10) and Simran Kumari (11), touched an iron rod — which held up a tin shed at the store — that touched the exposed electrical wire.

Maya Kumari, Shubhi’s aunt, said, “Our neighbour Laxmi Narayan (24) rushed to save the girls but he got electrocuted in the process too.”

Kumar added: “As their cries got louder and more residents came out of their homes, my aunt Jaanki Paswan rushed to the shop and got electrocuted while trying to pull out the girls from the waterlogged lane.”

Residents said it took nearly 15 minutes to snap the electricity supply to the shop.

Four of the victims (Surbhi, Simran, Laxmi and Jaanki) were taken to the Santosh Sudarshan Hospital on GT Road, and Khushi was taken to Yashoda hospital, where she was declared dead on arrival.

Dr Anjay Vats, chief medical superintendent of the Santosh Sudarshan, said, “All four were brought dead.”

Police said one of the girls was taken to another hospital, but she too did not survive.

Residents, while blaming the authorities for the incident, tried to block the GT Road stretch outside the hospital but returned after discussions with the police.

Residents said Sushil Kumar opened the store around two months ago.

“We have not received any complaint so far from the families of the victims, but we are conducting inquiries,” said Nipun Agarwal, superintendent of police (city).

Officials of the Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitaran Nigam Limited (PVVNL) said an initial inquiry found that the electrocutions were a result of loose household wiring. “It seems the electrocutions were the result of some loosely connected household wire,” said Pankaj Srivastava, chief engineer of PVVNL.

Late in the evening, the UP CM”s office issued a statement saying the kin of the deceased will get a compensation of ₹2 lakh each and added that an inquiry is underway to ascertain the cause of the electrocutions.