India, Aug. 13 -- A 42-year-old woman died after her new car plunged into a pond while learning to drive at Keshtopur near Kolkata on Wednesday, police said.

The woman, Sumitra Das, used to stay with her husband Krishnendu and their daughter in a flat near Prafulla Kanan West off the VIP Road in the northern fringes of Kolkata. While Krishnendu runs a business, Sumitra worked in a private firm.

"The family recently purchased a car and Sumitra was learning to drive it. She had to appear for a driving test for her license and was practising. She might have pressed the accelerator instead of the brakes and the car plunged into the 10-12 feet deep pond," said a police official.

Locals told the media that some people jumped into the pond to...