Four Students Die After Toxic Gas Leak Inside Underground Tank in Vrindavan

A routine cleaning operation turned fatal in Uttar Pradesh’s Vrindavan on Wednesday after four students, aged between 17 and 20, died of suffocation inside an underground water tank at Vrindavan Gurukulam.

The incident took place at the residential Sanskrit institution in Chaitanya Vihar. According to district administration officials, the students noticed a foul smell coming from the campus water storage tank. They reportedly used an electric pump to drain the upper layer of water before entering the 12-to-14-foot-deep tank to clean the sludge and sediment.

The situation turned tragic when the first student who entered the tank reportedly collapsed after inhaling toxic fumes accumulated inside the confined space. Four others then entered the tank in an attempt to rescue him but also lost consciousness.

Local residents and onlookers pulled all five students out of the tank and rushed them to the district hospital. Doctors declared four of them dead on arrival.

The fifth student, identified as Rudra, survived and was initially treated at the hospital before being shifted to a higher medical facility for specialised care.

Authorities are investigating the incident, including the nature of the toxic gas that accumulated inside the underground tank.