Five, including 2 girls, killed in UP’s Kaushambi as mud mound collapses on them

The deceased were identified as Mamta (35), Lalita (35), Kachrahi (60), Uma Devi (15), and Khushi (16) — all local residents.

The injured, all minors, are undergoing treatment at a hospital. Doctors said their condition was stable.

The government has granted an ex-gratia payment of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin of those who died in the incident.

According to the police, they received information early Monday morning about a mud mound collapsing on several women at Tikar Deeh village. A police team arrived at the site, where locals were already trying to rescue the victims from the mud.

The police extracted the victims from the mound and rushed them to hospital, where five were declared dead. A JCB machine was later brought in to ensure that no other victims remained trapped inside.

The police said it was found that the victims had gone to collect mud for plastering their mud houses.

They were extracting wet mud from the middle of the mound, as it is more suitable for plastering, said Awadhesh Kumar Vishwakarma, Circle Officer, Kaushambi.

This caused a crack in the mound which collapsed on the victims, he added.