Four minor girls living at a government home and a 24-year-old caretaker drowned in Samuthiram lake near Tiruvannamalai on Monday after some residents entered the water to bathe, according to a report by the Times of India. The tragedy occurred after recent rain had filled the lake to its full capacity.
The deceased girls were identified as Vijayalakshmi, 16, Alli, 14, Bhumika, 13, and Valliyammal, 16. All four were inmates of the government home at Anaipiranthandhan in Tiruvannamalai district and hailed from Karappattu village. The caretaker, Thenmozhi, was from Vazhuthalangunam village in the district.
The home operates under the district child protection unit of the Department of Social Welfare and Women’s Empowerment. It houses more than 100 minor girls who attend schools in the district, making the incident a major child-safety concern involving a state-supported residential facility.
According to the report, more than 10 girls went behind the home towards the adjacent lake. While playing near the water, some of the children entered the lake to bathe. Four girls moved into deeper water and began drowning. Thenmozhi reached the lake after learning that the children were in distress and entered the water in an attempt to rescue them. She became trapped in silt and also drowned.
The location of the home beside a water body that had reached full capacity after rain became central to the emergency response. The account supplied by the Times of India does not state whether the lake perimeter had fencing, warning signs, access controls or designated supervision arrangements. It also does not establish how the girls were able to leave the facility grounds or whether any safety protocol governed access to the lake.
Tiruvannamalai district collector Vandana Garg, superintendent of police R Uthayakumar and other senior government officials visited the site to inspect the government home and the lake premises. Tiruvannamalai (West) police personnel, assisted by fire and rescue services staff, recovered the bodies.
The bodies were sent for postmortem examination to Tiruvannamalai Government Medical College Hospital. Police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deaths. The investigation is expected to establish the sequence of events and examine the safety conditions at the home and the adjoining lake premises.
