At least eight women were killed and another remained untraced on Friday after the tractor they were travelling on fell into the AMRP (Alimineti Madhava Reddy Project) canal abutting their hamlet in the mandal, about 130 kms from Hyderabad.
According to the police, the tractor trolley carrying 25 people fell into the nearly 12-foot-deep canal in the Waddipatla gram panchayat limits here at 6.10 a.m. when the driver lost control over the vehicle on the narrow road.
Fifteen others who suffered minor injuries were taken to the Devarakonda general hospital. All the victims were women from the same hamlet, and were picked up by the contractor driver from Padamati tanda to the neighbouring Pulicherla village for onion harvesting.
The victims were identified as Ramavath Bharathi, 35 and her sister Ramavath Sunitha, 30, Ramavath Sona, 70 and Ramavath Jeja, 65, Jarukula Dwali, 30, Ramavath Keli, 50, Ramavath Kamsali, 50 and Banavath Dari, 55.
Swimmers were pressed into service to search for Ramavath Bazu, 50, who remained untraced till late in the evening.
Bereaved families and relatives staged protests in the hamlet with the bodies, stalling post-mortem. They also turned down the compensation package announced by District Collector Gaurav Uppal. Minister G. Jagadish Reddy and Nagarjuna Sagar MLA and Congress Legislature Party leader K. Jana Reddy reached the spot and assured the families of full compensation.
Mr Reddy promised an immediate relief of ₹10, 000 in cash for funeral rites, ₹2 lakh ex gratia, a 2 BHK house for the victim's family, education for children, and all government support to the families. Superintendent of Police A.V. Ranganath who had a tough time pacifying the protesters promised a thorough probe into the incident. He said action would be taken against tractor driver Butchi Reddy who is absconding.
