5-year-old dies of thirst in Rajasthan desert

KOTA: A five-year-old girl in Rajasthan’s Jalore district died crying for water while walking with her grandmother through a desert, police said on Tuesday

KOTA: A five-year-old girl in Rajasthan’s Jalore district died crying for water while walking with her grandmother through a desert, police said on Tuesday. The girl’s grandmother, too, fainted due to the heat and was rescued, they added.

HT Image

According to Raniwada Station House Officer, Padma Ram, the incident took place on Sunday morning when Sukhi Devi, 60, and her granddaughter Anjali decided to cover the 15km distance from a relative’s house in Sirohi district to their residence in Dungri village of Raniwada region on foot.

After covering about seven kilometres within five hours in 40 degrees Celsius weather, the girl and her grandmother felt thirsty, but with no water to drink and no one around to help, the girl’s condition deteriorated and she passed away crying for water. Her grandmother, too, fainted.

A shepherd passing by spotted the two and informed the local village chief. Later, police arrived at the spot and rushed them to the hospital, where Anjali was declared dead.

Police said the girl died due to dehydration and cardiac arrest. “The two made the mistake of not carrying water, and choosing to walk through the desert,” said Ram.

The incident triggered a war of words between the state government and the Opposition.

“It is the misfortune of Rajasthan that an incompetent and corrupt Congress government has transformed it into a land of starvation, unemployment, chaos and mafia raj,” tweeted Rajasthan BJP chief Satish Poonia.

Hitting back, Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma said the incident was unfortunate and the local administration will probe the matter.