CUDDALORE: Three children drowned in a pond at Yedasithur village near Vriddhachalam. Karthick (10), son of Rayar, Vetrivel (10), son of Murthy, and Kumaravel (10), son of Sakthivel were all Class V students of the panchayat union primary school in the village.
On Friday, the children went to school as usual. They took half-a-day leave to attend a temple festival, but did not return home even after the festival got over late in the evening. Parents and relatives searched for them and also lodged a complaint at Mangalampettai police station.
The parents and relatives continued their search through the night in nearby villages and also at Vriddhachalam where they showed the pictures of the missing children.
The villagers then saw the dead bodies floating in a pond in the village on Saturday morning. They immediately informed the parents and the police.
A pall of gloom descended on the village when the bodies of the three children were fished out of the pond. The bodies were taken to Vriddhachalam government hospital for autopsy. Vriddhachalam RDO Senthil Kumar and Thittagudi MLA Ganesan consoled the families at the hospital.