Two cousins drowned in the Kageshwari River at Punduria village of Pabna's Sathiya upazila on Saturday morning.
The deceased were identified as Enamul Haque, 5, son of Azadul Islam from Atiapara village, and Ayesha Khatun, daughter of Hafizul Islam from Punduria village.
Karamja Union Parishad Chairman Hossain Ali Bagchi confirmed the information.
According to family members, Enamul had come to visit after his grandmother's death on Thursday. During the pilgrimage ceremony on Saturday, both families were busy with preparations when Enamul and Ayesha began playing with a football near their home around 11 AM.
The ball ended up in the nearby Kageshwari River, and the children are believed to have drowned while trying to retrieve it.
They were later found in the river by family members who went to fetch water. The children were rushed to the upazila health complex, where doctors declared them dead.
Dr. Fatema Tuz Jannat of Bara Upazila Health Complex confirmed that the children were brought dead at the hosputal.
