India, June 22 -- Ludhiana

What began as an afternoon of play ended in heartbreak for three families at Giaspura in Ludhiana after the bodies of four minor boys - including 10-year-old twin brothers - were recovered from the Sidhwan Canal near Lohara Bridge late on Friday and Saturday morning.

The victims, aged between 10 and 15 years, had reportedly gone to the canal on Thursday evening to escape the oppressive summer heat. None of them knew how to swim. In a desperate attempt to stay safe, the boys had tied themselves together with a rope, but tragedy struck when the rope snapped in the canal's strong current, sweeping all four away.

The deceased were identified as Prakash (14), Manish (15), and twin brothers Sahil alias Molu and Sam...