Tamil Nadu: PM Modi condoles drowning of seven girls at check dam in Cuddalore

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday expressed grief over the deaths of four adults and three minor girls who drowned at a check dam in Cuddalore on June 5.

"I'm saddened by the drowning of youngsters in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore. In this time of grief, my thoughts are with the bereaved families," tweeted the Prime Minister's office.

Seven people drowned at a check dam on the Gadilam river in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore on Sunday. According to the Nellikuppam police in Cuddalore, the deceased had gone for a bath in the river water when the incident took place.

Earlier, Chief Minister MK Stalin had announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of the deceased from the General Relief Fund.

In a press statement, Stalin appealed to the administration for more careful monitoring of children bathing in water bodies. "The safety of children and young people bathing in rivers and pools must be ensured altogether," he said in the statement.

He also urged the local bodies to put up warning and notice boards to inform people about the river areas with greater depths. "Local authorities and the police should educate the people living in their respective areas about the dangers of water bodies, especially children and adolescents, and provide them with the first aid training in case of any casualties and explain the safe use of water bodies," he added.