KASGANJ: As many as 22 people, including eight children, died when their tractor-trolley overturned and fell into a pond in Uttar Pradesh’s Kasganj district on Saturday morning, officials said.

Earlier, Inspector General of Aligarh range Shalabh Mathur had said that 24 passengers died in the accident and 15 to 20 people were injured.

However later, Relief Commission of Uttar Pradesh Naveen Kumar GS, citing a statement of Kasganj Additional District Magistrate Rakesh Kumar Patel, said, “Twenty-two people died when the tractor-trolley overturned and fell into a pond.”

“The deceased include 13 women, a man and eight children. Ten people are currently undergoing treatment,” the statement said. The passengers of the ill-fated tractor-trolley belonged to Etah district and they were going to take a bath in the Ganga river on Poornima (full moon).

According to Kasganj district administration, information about the accident in Daryavganj village was received around 10 am. It also announced Rs 4 lakh to the kin of each of the deceased, and Rs 50,000 to each of the injured.

President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath condoled the loss of lives in the incident.

Terming the loss of lives as “heartbreaking” and “saddening”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Heartbreaking! The accident that took place when a tractor trolley fell into a pond in Kasganj, Uttar Pradesh is saddening.”

PM Modi also said that Rs 2 lakh ex gratia from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) would be given to the next of kin of each deceased and the injured would be given Rs 50,000.