Van falls into pond, 4 family members die

Four members of a family, including a two-year-old child, were killed after their van veered off the road and plunged into a pond in Kanpur Dehat district on Friday evening, police said.

The Auraiya-based family was returning from a function at a relative’s house in Kalyanpur when the accident took place near Savai village in Shivli, about 40 km from the district headquarters. Eleven people were in the van when it fell.

According to officials, the vehicle went out of control and fell into a roadside pond, gradually sinking into deep water. The doors reportedly jammed, trapping passengers inside. Locals, alerted by screams, rushed to the spot and informed the police.

A team led by Shivli Station House Officer Amarendra Kumar Singh launched a rescue operation. All the victims were taken to the Community Health Centre in Shivli, where doctors declared four persons brought dead. The injured were later referred to Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital for further treatment. Rajkishore Agnihotri (60), his wife Snehlata Agnihotri (55), their daughter Himanshi Agnihotri (30), and his two-year-old grandson Shiv Agnihotri died in the accident.