Rampur police station
A woman and her son were electrocuted to death on Tuesday morning at Turchi village under Rampur police station in Madanpur of Kalahandi district. The identity of the deceased is yet to be ascertained.
Sources reported that a woman was laying wet clothes over a wire to dry outside her house premises. Unbeknownst to her, live electric current was flowing through that same stretch of wire, and she reportedly came in contact with an exposed region of it, receiving a major shock.
Hearing her wails, her son, aged 30, rushed to her aid but tried to remove her from the spot using his hands, causing him to be electrocuted as well. The shock proved fatal, and the duo died on the spot.
Till the last reports came in, police had yet to reach the spot. However, locals had managed to retrieve the bodies and inform the electricity department regarding the damaged cable. Meanwhile, an air of tension prevailed in the area, with sources reporting locals being extremely wary of overhanging cables and wires close to their residences.
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In concerning cases, this accidental electrocution is not the only one of its kind in the state. Earlier this year, a couple died of electrocution in Koraput after unintentionally stepping onto a live wire meant for the poaching of wild boars.
It is also worth mentioning that accidental electrocution not only affects humans but also wildlife. Pachyderms in the state are the most affected, with one recent case of a tusker dying after receiving fatal doses of electric current, owing to alleged negligence by the forest and electricity department officials.
(Reported by Rajkumar Singh Deo)