Over the past 24 hours, 46 people, including 37 children, have died in separate drowning accidents across Bihar during the ‘Jitiya’ or ‘Jivitputrika’ celebration, a government official confirmed. Three are also reported to have gone missing.
Nitish Kumar, the Chief Minister, expressed condolences for the deaths, which included seven women, and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each for the next of kin of the deceased. Drowning cases were reported in East and West Champaran, Aurangabad, Kaimur, Buxar, Siwan, Rohtas, Saran, Patna, Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Gopalganj, and Arwal districts.
“So far, 43 bodies have been fished out. The kin of the victims will be given Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia. Eight of them have already been disbursed,” a disaster management department (DMD) official said. DMD has requested multiple teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) to conduct search and rescue operations.
Eight children died in Aurangabad district, four in Itahat village (Baruna police station), and four in Kushaha village (Madanpur police station). Aurangabad District Magistrate Srikant Shastri said, “The incidents took place when the victims, along with their family members, went to the ponds to take a holy bath on the occasion of the ‘Jivitputrika’ festival.” During this festival, women fast for the well-being of their children.
Mothers celebrate the holiday of “Jitiya” in some states of India in the hopes of the prosperity and well-being of their children. The tragedy occurred when children, accompanied by their mothers, took a dip in different water bodies. According to the reports, seven minors perished in the Bhabhua and Mohania police stations while bathing in the Durgawati river and pond, respectively.
