Eleven people were killed and several feared dead as a tractor carrying idols of goddess Durga for immersion plunged into a lake in Madhya Pradesh’s Khandwa district, said police officials.

Inspector General of Police (Indore rural range) Anurag reported that the incident occurred in the Pandhana area. The devotees were on a tractor transporting more than a dozen Durga idols from different villages for immersion, he told PTI.

So far nine bodies have been recovered with the help of the State Disaster Response Force and local divers, he said, and the search and rescue operation is underway.

An additional SDRF team has been sent to the site, he said. “We have learnt that five to six devotees survived,” the official said, adding that a probe has been launched into the accident.

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