A 30-year-old villager in Cooch Behar district died of electrocution while installing festive decorative lights at home on the occasion of Diwali on Monday evening.
The deceased, Badal Biswas, used to reside at Uttar Sitai village under the Sitai police station limits of Cooch Behar.
Local sources said that around 7pm on Monday, Badal was decorating the entrance to his house with fairylights when an alleged short-circuit near the electric meter of his residence led to his getting electrocuted.
Badal instantly collapsed on the spot.
At the time of the accident, his wife, sister and niece were in the house. However, amid the festivities they did not immediately come to know that anything was wrong.
Half an hour later, they found Badal lying unconscious near the gate.
Badal’s niece was the first to notice him lying prostrate on the ground.
Her screams alerted other family members, who rushed to his aid.
Badal was initially rushed to the nearest block primary health centre in Sitai.
There, his kin were told to rush him to the MJN Medical College and Hospital in Cooch Behar.
However, doctors on duty there declared the youth dead on arrival.
Badal, his neighbours said, had got married a few months back.
“His death has come as a total shock for us. We don’t have words to console his newlywed wife,” said Aparna, his aunt.