VILLUPURAM: A six-year-old girl drowned in a hotel swimming pool near Marakanam on Tuesday during her birthday celebration.
According to Kottakuppam police, Sushant Thokal from Uttarakhand, along with his wife Smriti Noiwal Thokal, son Parjanya Thokal (10), and daughter Barnika Thokal (6), arrived in Puducherry on Sunday for a tour. They were staying at a private hotel on East Coast Road.
“On Tuesday, they celebrated Barnika’s birthday. In the evening, Sushant and Parjanya were in the adult swimming pool, while Smriti and Barnika were playing in the kids’ pool,” police sources said.
After spending time in the swimming pool, Smriti returned to the room with her daughter, but after some time, Barnika went back alone to the adult swimming pool area, where she slipped and fell into the pool. People at the spot rescued her and took her to a private medical college hospital in Ganapathichettikulam near the Puducherry border, where doctors declared her brought dead. Kottakuppam police sent the body for autopsy at the same hospital. A case has been registered, and further inquiry is under way.