Five persons died on Tuesday (June 24, 2025) after allegedly inhaling a toxic gas while attempting to rescue a cow that had fallen into a well in Dharnawada village of Madhya Pradesh’s Guna district, officials said.
The incident occurred around 11 a.m. at a private farmhouse under the Raghogarh sub-division, Deepa Dodve, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDOP), told The Hindu.
The farmhouse, located by the roadside, includes a mango orchard where a group of children were plucking fruit at the time of the incident. “When the children were inside the farm, a cow entered the premises. As they chased her out of it, the animal fell into a well. The children then alerted the elders,” Ms. Dodve said. The well is approximately 70 feet deep.
Two men initially descended into the well to rescue the animal but were unable to climb out after experiencing breathing difficulties and losing consciousness. “Another man entered the well to help them but came out due to breathing problems, after which three more men went in and also fell unconscious,” she added. Of the six who entered, only one survived.
A joint rescue operation was launched by local police, the State Disaster Emergency Response Force (SDERF), and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), but by the time the bodies of the five men and the cow were recovered, all were dead, the officer said.
Personnel from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), stationed at a nearby Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) unit, were also called in to assist with the rescue, which lasted over two hours.
Water samples from the well have been sent to the National Fertilisers Limited (NFL) unit in the district to help determine the nature of the suspected gas. “The water in the well appears fairly clean so it’s difficult to say what actually caused the deaths,” Ms. Dodve said.
Police have initiated an investigation and further action will follow based on the post-mortem reports and findings from the NFL analysis, she added.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav expressed grief over the tragedy and announced an ex gratia of ₹4 lakh for each of the bereaved families. “The accident in Dharnawada village of Raghogarh tehsil in Guna district, resulting in the death of five people, is extremely tragic. My condolences are with the grief-stricken families. I have instructed the [district] in-charge Minister Govind Singh Rajput ji to reach the accident site,” he posted on social media platform X.
