Tripura chariot tragedy: One more succumbs, toll rises to 10

Agartala, July 29 (IANS) With one more person succumbing to her injuries, the death toll in the June 28 chariot tragedy in Tripura rose to ten, police said on Saturday.

The victims comprise of four woman children and as many children, they added.

A devotee named Rupa Ghosh(32) died at a Delhi hospital on Friday night after battling for life for 31 days following the tragic incident.

Nine people were electrocuted to death and 30 others were injured on June 28 after a chariot made of iron came in contact with an overhead high-tension wire in the Kumarghat area in northern Tripura.

A police spokesman said that the chariot taken out on the occasion of ‘Ulto Rath’, the return journey of the annual Rath Yatra procession, was carrying the idols of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra.

Eyewitnesses had said that hundreds of devotees were pulling the rope of the chariot taken out by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), which came in contact with the 11,000-volt high-tension wire, as proper precautionary measures were not taken.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had condoled the deaths and announced a
compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the deceased.

Tripura government also provided compensations to the families of the
deceased and injured people.

A magisterial and a high-level probe have been ordered into the incident.