Two children drowned in a pond in Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha on Saturday. The deceased were identified as Robiul,6 son of Yasin Ali and Shofiul, 5, son of Ayub Ali. According to relatives, the kids were playing near a pond adjacent to their home in Dumurgacha village. When they  did not return home after a long period, the family members went to the pond and found their bodies floating on it. Also read: College student drowns after jumping into river in Natore; body goes missing Although locals recovered the unconscious body and took it to a nearby medical facility, the on duty doctors declared them dead. The kids were presumably dead even before they were rushed to the hospital, witnesses told UNB. Drowning in Bangladesh Drowning is the leading cause of death for children under five in Bangladesh. According to Bangladesh Health and Injury Survery(BHIS), in Bangladesh nearly 17,000 children drown annually, an average of around 46 each day. Also read: 4 children drown in Kishoreganj and Pabna A cross-governmental taskforce was established on drowning prevention – led by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, with representation from 12 departments. The task force is working to prepare a ‘National Drowning Reduction Strategy’. According to the WHO’s latest estimates, drowning is the cause of 235,000 deaths every year. Many countries including Bangladesh  report drowning as a leading cause of childhood mortality, particularly in children under-5.