Three relatives have died in a landslide in a pit in the village of Bharandipara in Nabarangpur District, Orissa, India, on Friday 9 December 2016. The dead have been identified as Chandra Gaida (16) and his sister-in-laws Radhika Gaida (26) and Nilendri Gaida (24). Another three people were injured in the incident, who have been named as Gajamati Gaida (17), Bhagabati Gaida (13) and Jaymani Bhatra (16); four more people in the pit escaped unharmed. It is understood that the deceased were engaged in collecting coloured soils for the Diwali festival at the time of the collapse.
A body being recovered from the scene of the 9 December 2016 Bharandipara landslide. Orissa Post.
Coloured soils, sands and other materials, such as coloured rice and flour or petals of flowers, are widely collected in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh ahead of the Diwali festival, when they are used to make patterns on the floors of homes and courtyards, a practise known as Rangoli (though it has a lot of local names). These patterns are typically geometric or floral in nature, and are passed down from generation to generation in families.
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