ARARIA: Two children died and two others were injured after a mound of soil collapsed on them at a canal project site in Bihar’s Araria district, a police officer said.The incident took place in Phulkaha village under the Narpatganj block of the district.“Two children died while the other two are undergoing treatment at a medical facility. The condition of the injured children is stable, ” Araria SP Jitendra Kumar told news agency PTI.The SP said the children were playing near the canal project area, where soil excavated for the project had been piled on both sides. The upper layer of the soil collapsed following rain, trapping the children underneath, he said.An FIR will be registered after the families of the deceased submit a complaint, the SP said.He said that several families, including those of the deceased, were living on government land besides the canal project.“It has come to our notice through local residents that Raju Paswan of the neighbourhood used to dig away soil from the mounds on a regular basis. As a result, while the upper layer of the soil mound got consolidated, it was hollowed out at some places from beneath,” Kumar said.Police are investigating this aspect of the case besides other things, the SP added.(With agency inputs)
