3 Children Among 8 Killed As Car Swept Away Near Maa Baglamukhi Temple In MP’s Nalkheda

Nalkheda (Madhya Pradesh): Eight people, including three children, were killed after a rain-swollen drain swept away their car near the Maa Baglamukhi Temple in Nalkheda, Madhya Pradesh, at 3 am on Saturday, Agar-Malwa superintendent of police Dilip Kumar Soni said.

The dead include three children, two women and three men. Seven of the victims were pilgrims from Odisha who had come to visit the temple in a car hired from Ujjain, Nalkheda police station in-charge Shashi Upadhyay said. The eighth victim was the driver.

According to information provided by the administration, the seven Odisha victims were Radha Rani Behera (35), Gyanendra Kumar Behera (41), Rita Rani (38), wife of Gyanendra Kumar Behera, Shibaprasad Behera (42), and three children - Krishna Rajveer (13), Shahira Swayamprabha (6) and V Sai Swastik (10).

All were residents of Bhubaneswar. The eighth victim, Arun Goyal (30), was the vehicle's driver and a resident of Sudwas village in Barod tehsil of Agar-Malwa district.

Soni said preliminary investigations point to drowning as the cause of death. Police are examining CCTV footage from the temple and surrounding areas.

Preliminary findings suggest that the driver may have tried to cross the stream in haste, following which the strong current swept away the vehicle.

According to local records, the area received 3.7 inches of rainfall in the previous 24 hours, with the intensity peaking during the night. Heavy rain caused a sudden rise in the seasonal stream, turning a routine temple visit into a major tragedy.

Following the incident, administrative officials and rescue teams rushed to the spot and launched an operation to trace the vehicle and recover the occupants.

Rescue teams subsequently located the car. Police identified the vehicle as a Maruti Suzuki S-Presso bearing registration number MP 13 AF 7135.

Police and the tehsildar reached the spot after a resident raised the alarm. The State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) helped retrieve the vehicle, and authorities sent all the bodies for post-mortem examination.

A large number of people gathered at the spot following the accident as police and rescue personnel continued the operation. Officials are also collecting details to establish the circumstances leading to the incident.