Ludhiana, 20 July: Two young sisters lost their lives after being bitten by a snake while sleeping on the rooftop of a tubewell room in Pawat village near Machhiwara on Saturday night. The victims have been identified as Anupam (11) and Surbhi (8), both school-going children.
The girls were reportedly sleeping outside due to frequent power cuts when the incident occurred. Their mother, Asha Devi, said the family has been residing in makeshift huts near agricultural fields for the last four to five years. On Thursday night, the sisters had dinner and went to sleep on the roof. Around 1 am, they came down briefly when electricity was restored but returned to the rooftop once the power went out again.
Moments later, the girls began vomiting and showing signs of distress. “We woke up to their cries and saw a snake slithering in the courtyard. We managed to kill it, but by then both girls were frothing at the mouth,” Asha Devi said, recalling the horrifying moments.
Bite marks were found — one on Anupam’s neck and another on Surbhi’s hand. The family rushed the girls to the civil hospital in Machhiwara, but doctors declared them brought dead.
The family confirmed the cause of death as snakebite, and local authorities have been informed. The incident has cast a pall of gloom over the village, highlighting the vulnerability of migrant and landless families living in unprotected, temporary shelters near farmlands.
