Three sisters drowned after slipping into deep water in Sunar river in Bhopal’s Sagar district on Tuesday.
The deceased have been identified as Poonam (8), Kajal (6), and Khushi (4), went to the river to have a bath, not very far from their residence in Gandhi ward in Garhakota town.
The girls’ father Purushottam Patel — a farm labourer, and his wife were working in a field when the girls left their house for the river.
The couple has a 12-year-old son too but he was also not home when the girls decided to go to the river, the police said.
“People present at the spot tried to save the girls but they couldn’t succeed. It appears the girls could not assess the depth of the water level which is on the higher side due to rains earlier,” Amit Sanghi, superintendent of police in Sagar said.
BJP leader and leader of opposition Gopal Bhargava has demanded that the state government should provide immediate compensation to the family.
Pointing out that this is the third incident in a week where kids have drowned, Bhargava said, “The administration should identify all the water sources where the water level is high and where such incidents can take place. The administration should put up a warning sign at such places.”