INDORE/BHUBANESWAR: A pilgrimage ended in tragedy for a Bhubaneswar family after seven of its members were killed when their cab was swept away by floodwaters in Madhya Pradesh’s Agar Malwa district early Saturday. The deceased included three children, two women, and a taxi driver from Ujjain.The pilgrims had visited Maa Baglamukhi temple in Agar Malwa’s Nalkheda and were on their way out when their vehicle slid off a culvert over a swollen rainwater drain around 3am. The strong currents swept the car nearly 100 metres away. The vehicle became visible only after the water level receded later in the morning, when its roof could be seen above the water.The accident triggered protests in Nalkheda, with residents blocking traffic and raising slogans against the administration.“Exceptionally heavy rainfall led to a strong flow in the rainwater drain near the temple. It is suspected that the vehicle was swept away while the driver was trying to cross the nullah. We are conducting a detailed investigation into the circumstances,” Agar Malwa SP Dilip Kumar Soni said.The deceased were identified as Siba Prasad Behera (43), his son Krishna Raj (14), daughter Saira (8), sister Ritarani (38), her husband Gyanendra Kumar (44), their son Sai Swasthi, and Siba’s youngest sister Radharani (29).PM Narendra Modi expressed grief and announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the kin of the deceased.Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi declared a compensation of Rs 5 lakh and directed officials to coordinate with the MP govt to help the bereaved family.