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India drought: Boy drowns in Maharashtra well | India drought: Boy drowns in Maharashtra well |
(about 4 hours later) | |
An 11-year-old boy has slipped into a deep well and drowned while fetching water in a drought-affected area in India's western state of Maharashtra. | |
TV pictures showed villagers pulling Sachin Kengar out of the well in Beed district on Thursday and trying unsuccessfully to revive him. | TV pictures showed villagers pulling Sachin Kengar out of the well in Beed district on Thursday and trying unsuccessfully to revive him. |
Earlier this week an 11-year-old girl died of heatstroke while collecting water from a village pump in Beed. | |
Some 330 million people are affected by the drought in India. | |
The government says nearly 256 districts across India, home to nearly a quarter of the population, have been hit. | The government says nearly 256 districts across India, home to nearly a quarter of the population, have been hit. |
Beed is one of the worst affected districts: half of its 1,403 villages are facing an acute water crisis. | |
Local journalist Manoj Satpute told the BBC that Kengar was trying to fetch water from a 60ft (18m) deep well in his village when he slipped and fell. | Local journalist Manoj Satpute told the BBC that Kengar was trying to fetch water from a 60ft (18m) deep well in his village when he slipped and fell. |
"We went to the spot and saw the boy's cycle and vessels [for carrying water] were still there. It appears he died of drowning after he fell into the well," police constable Dinakar Puri was quoted as saying by the NDTV news channel. | "We went to the spot and saw the boy's cycle and vessels [for carrying water] were still there. It appears he died of drowning after he fell into the well," police constable Dinakar Puri was quoted as saying by the NDTV news channel. |
On Sunday, Yogita Desai, 11, died of heatstroke and dehydration after spending close to four hours in 42C temperatures gathering water from a village pump in Beed. | |
The pump was only 500m from her house, but a typical wait for water stretches into hours. | The pump was only 500m from her house, but a typical wait for water stretches into hours. |
India is heavily dependent on monsoon rains, which have been poor for two years in a row. |
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