10 women die in India mudslide
Ten impoverished women working as daily wage labourers died after being buried alive on April 10 in southern India by a mudslide, police said.
PHOTO: AFP
PUBLISHED ONApril 10, 2019 9:54 PM
NEW DELHI - Ten impoverished women working as daily wage labourers died after being buried alive on Wednesday (April 10) in southern India by a mudslide, police said.
The incident took place in the Narayanpet district of Telangana state, a senior police officer told AFP.
"They were daily wage labourers and were working at a digging site. They went near a hill to have their lunch when the mudslide occurred," said Narayanpet deputy police superintendent G. Sridhar.
Police and rescue officials used earth movers to clear the mud and retrieve the bodies.
The Press Trust of India news agency quoted witnesses as saying the women were buried under a mound of mud some six to eight feet (1.82m to 2.43m) deep.
State Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao asked officials to provide help to the families of the victims who he said "belonged to the poorest strata" of the society.
Hundreds of people die in floods and landslides across India each year.
The landslides are more common during the monsoon season which runs from June to September.