Electric Shock Kills Four Ganesh Festival Volunteers in Hyderabad

 Hyderabad: Four persons from different areas of the city died of electrocution and one was injured on Monday night, just a day after five persons died during a religious procession in Ramanthapur.

The victims at an incident at Bandlaguda were Vikas Sharma, a student who also worked in the parking lot of the city zoo from Uppuguda and Dhoni, a lorry driver. At Amberpet, Ram Charan, a decorator, died and in Mangalhat, Raj Kumar Seva Singh succumbed to injuries. They were were all aged between 18 and 35 years and were the sole breadwinners of their families.

At Bandlaguda, two persons died and one was injured while transporting a 20-foot-tall Lord Ganesha idol at around 1 am on Monday.

According to Bandlaguda inspector R. Devendra, Vikas Sharma, 22, was transporting the Ganesha idol from Laxminagar to Puranapul along with 10 others. The idol came close to a 33KV power line, where an ‘induction charge’ killed the Sharma.

Due to the vehicle’s rear being covered with iron sheets, the current spread to Dhoni, who died on the spot. Another passenger, Akhil, fell from the vehicle and sustained head injuries. He is in a critical condition and undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Santoshnagar. The others on the vehicle jumped to safety.

At DD Colony, Amberpet, Ram Charan, 18, died after falling from a height of 15 feet following an electric shock while setting up a pandal for the Ganesh Chaturthi on Monday evening.

He had sustained grievous injuries and was taken to a private hospital in Amberpet, where doctors refused to treat him. He was later shifted to a hospital in Kachiguda, where he died after battling for life for nearly 12 hours.

Police said Ram Charan was attempting to lift electric wires with a wet stick when he was electrocuted. Amberpet Inspector T. Kiran Kumar confirmed his death at 4 pm on Tuesday.

At Dhoolpet, 35-year-old Maharashtra native Raj Kumar Seva Singh died after coming into contact with a live wire at a Ganesh idol-making shed at around 8 pm on Monday, according to Mangalhat inspector M. Mahesh.

The bodies of Vikas, Dhoni, and Raj Kumar were shifted to the Osmania General Hospital mortuary for post-mortem examination before being handed over to their families.