Three girls drown in farm well in Ranipet

Three girls including two siblings drowned in an open well at Aroor village near Arcot town in Ranipet on Saturday after they slipped into the water body while they tried to wash their clothes.

Police said the deceased has been identified as A. Yuvasri (13), A. Priyanka (12) and V. Priya (13). The former two girls are siblings and study class eight and seven at Panchayat Union Middle School in the village. The third girl, Priya, is a classmate of Yuvasri in the school.

Initial inquiry revealed that after informing their parents, the girls went to the well on the outskirts of the village to wash their clothes including school uniforms. Police said girls kept their clothes on the bund and could have tried to step near the open well. As the well was surrounded by slushy mud, the girls could have slipped into the well, which is around 40 ft deep, and drowned.

As the three girls did not return for a long time, the parents of the girls went in search of them. They found slippers and clothes of the children near the well. Based on alert, Vazhapanthal police, who along with firefighters, retrieved the bodies from the farm well. A case was registered. A probe is underway.