Preetam Namdev (45), hailing from Pipri village of Jabalpur, had come to Allahabad along with his wife Asha (40), son Shiva (16) and daughter Shivani (12) to immerse the ashes of a relative near the Sangam, the holy confluence of Ganga and Yamuna.
The family conducted the ceremony at Baluaghat along the banks of Yamuna, after which all of them proceeded to take a ritual bath in the river. However, they lost balance and fell into the deeper waters crying for help, police added.
Professional divers, who always remain deployed along the banks to tackle such situations, rescued Preetam and Asha, both of whom had fallen unconscious, police said adding Shiva and Shivani could be traced only after a few hours of search and the youngsters died by the time they could be brought to the shore.