What happened here
1 / 3 Three girls aged 5 and 6 from one family drowned in an open farm water tank at Naka Basti, Makrana, in the Didwana-Kuchaman district of Rajasthan, at about 3 pm on Thursday 12 November 2026. One slipped in and the other two fell in trying to pull her out. The reports differ on whether the girls were sisters or cousins and on whether an adult was with them.
Quick answers
What happened at Makrana?
At about 3 pm on Thursday 12 November 2026 three girls aged 5 and 6 from one family drowned in an open farm water tank at Naka Basti on Mangalana Road in Makrana, Rajasthan.
How did it happen?
According to Dainik Bhaskar, one girl slipped into the tank and the other two fell in while trying to pull her out.
Were they sisters?
Dainik Bhaskar's headline says sisters, but its text says two of the fathers are brothers and the third girl's father is a cousin. ETV Bharat says girls of one family.
Was an adult with them?
First India News says they were with their grandmother to graze goats. Dainik Bhaskar and ETV Bharat do not mention an adult. We do not say.
Was there a police inquiry?
A relative gave the police a report that the girls drowned and that there is no suspicion; Dainik Bhaskar says the Parbatsar police reached the hospital.
Were there other similar drownings?
Yes. Four members of one family drowned in a farm tank at Bikaner on 11 November, and four young people drowned in one at Rupsi near Jaisalmer on 13 November.
How can open tanks be made safer?
Cover or fence them, keep a rope and a floating ring beside them, build steps on one side and keep young children away.
What should I do if a child falls in?
Shout for help, throw a rope or something that floats, do not jump in unless you can swim safely, call 112 or 108 and start CPR if the child is not breathing.
What happened
The Makrana farm tank drowning happened at about 3 pm on Thursday 12 November 2026 at Naka Basti on Mangalana Road in Makrana, in the Didwana-Kuchaman district of Rajasthan. Three girls aged 5 and 6 from one family went to a field to bring in the goats and fell into an open water tank, called a hauz, beside it. All three drowned. Dainik Bhaskar, ETV Bharat and First India News report three girls dead.
Dainik Bhaskar quotes the complaint of a relative: one girl slipped in and the other two fell in while trying to take her out. When they did not come home, the family searched, found them in the tank and took them to the Makrana sub-district hospital, where doctors declared them dead. The relative told the police there is no doubt or suspicion in the deaths, which the police recorded as drowning.
This page names no one. It sets out what is reported, where the reports differ and what an open tank teaches. It is one of three farm tank drownings reported in Rajasthan between 11 and 13 November 2026, and we cover the others, at Bikaner and Jaisalmer, on their own pages.
What the reports say
- When: About 3 pm on Thursday 12 November 2026 (Dainik Bhaskar)
- Where: Naka Basti, Mangalana Road, Makrana, Didwana-Kuchaman district, Rajasthan (ETV Bharat; Dainik Bhaskar)
- Who died: Three girls aged 5 and 6; Dainik Bhaskar says two are sisters and the third is a cousin from the same family; ETV Bharat and First India News call them girls of one family
- Why they were there: They had gone to a field to bring in the goats (Dainik Bhaskar); First India News says they went with their grandmother to graze goats
- The tank: An open water tank, a hauz, beside the field (Dainik Bhaskar; ETV Bharat)
- What happened: One girl slipped into the tank and the other two fell in while trying to pull her out (Dainik Bhaskar)
- Discovery: When the girls did not return home, relatives searched and found them in the tank (Dainik Bhaskar)
- Hospital: The three were taken to the Makrana sub-district hospital and declared dead (Dainik Bhaskar; ETV Bharat)
- Police: The Parbatsar police station staff reached the hospital; a relative’s report says the girls drowned and that there is no suspicion (Dainik Bhaskar)
- Identities: Reports name the girls and their fathers; we name no one
Where reports differ and what we do not know
- Sisters or cousins: Dainik Bhaskar’s headline says three sisters, but its text says two of the fathers are brothers and the third girl’s father is their cousin. ETV Bharat says three girls of one family. We say three girls from one family.
- How they fell in: Dainik Bhaskar says one girl slipped and the other two fell in trying to pull her out. ETV Bharat says they were playing near the tank and fell in. We say they fell in and note the reports.
- Who was with them: First India News says they had gone with their grandmother to graze goats. Dainik Bhaskar and ETV Bharat say the girls were sent to the field to bring the goats and make no mention of an adult. We do not say whether an adult was with them.
- The police: Dainik Bhaskar names the Parbatsar police as reaching the hospital; ETV Bharat quotes the district police on the incident. Neither gives a finding.
- Not reported: None of the pages says whether the tank had a cover, a fence or steps, or how deep it was. We do not guess.
What this teaches
An open tank beside a field is easy for a small child to treat as a place to look at, lean over or walk beside. Girls of five and six cannot judge its depth, and once in the water they cannot get out. When one child falls, the nearest child often reaches out or follows, which is how one fall can become three deaths. Three farm tank drownings in three days in Rajasthan, at Bikaner on 11 November, Makrana on 12 November and Rupsi near Jaisalmer on 13 November, took eleven lives. These are early reports, not findings.
We have covered similar events, among them the Sai River immersion drowning, the Gujarat drowning cluster of nine deaths, the Kota canal boat capsize and the Raghopur boat capsize. Our guide to water safety in rivers, ponds and wells sets out how to keep children away, and our guide to saving a drowning person without risking your own life explains what to do when someone goes under. For young children, our guide to child emergencies at home and school and our guide to basic first aid, including CPR cover what to do next.
We do not know how deep the tank was, whether it had a cover or a fence, or whether an adult was near the girls. The police have recorded the deaths as drowning. We will update this page if they or the district administration publish more.
- Three girls aged 5 and 6 go to a field to bring in the goats; one slips into an open water tank and the other two fall in trying to pull her out (Dainik Bhaskar)
- When the girls do not come home, relatives search the field and find them in the tank (Dainik Bhaskar)
- The three are taken to the Makrana sub-district hospital, where doctors declare them dead (Dainik Bhaskar; ETV Bharat)
- A relative gives the police a report that the girls drowned and that there is no suspicion; First India News carries a first report at about 1.47 am Indian time on 13 November (Dainik Bhaskar; First India News)
- ETV Bharat and Dainik Bhaskar carry fuller reports of the three families (ETV Bharat; Dainik Bhaskar)
Why consequences escalated
- Three girls aged 5 and 6 from one family drowned in an open farm water tank at Naka Basti, Makrana, on 12 November 2026.
- One slipped in and the other two fell in trying to pull her out, according to Dainik Bhaskar.
- A relative told the police there is no suspicion and the deaths were recorded as drowning.
- The reports differ on whether the girls were sisters or cousins and on whether an adult was with them.
- It was the second of three farm tank drownings reported in Rajasthan in three days.
Failures and risk multipliers
- No inquiry finding has been published. The reports leave these questions open:
- How deep the tank was and whether it had a cover, a fence or steps.
- Whether an adult was with the girls at the field.
- How long the girls were missing before they were found.
- Whether open tanks beside fields on the edge of the town have to be covered.
- These are open questions, not findings of fault.
Actions that reduce risk
- Parents and families: keep young children away from open tanks, wells and ponds, and never send small children to a field with open water on their own.
- Owners of tanks: cover or fence an open tank beside a field, keep a rope beside it and build steps or a ramp on one side.
- Anyone who sees a child in deep water: shout for help, throw a rope or something that floats, and do not jump in unless you can swim and reach the child safely.
- Call 112 or 108 and give the place name and a landmark.
- Authorities: publish the findings and consider covering rules and an awareness drive for open tanks near homes and fields.
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