A 45-year-old man allegedly strangulated his wife and two children to death and then attempted suicide at his house in Kanigiri mandal of Prakasam district on Tuesday, police said.

Timminani Srinivasa Reddy allegedly strangled his wife Adilakshmi (30) and children-- Bhavani (7) and Ganesh (5) -- with a rope and then tried to end his life by taking sleeping pills at his residence in Chintalapalem in Kanigiri mandal, Kanigiri Circle Inspector of Police U Sudhakar said.

Adilakshmi and her two children died on the spot while Reddy was rushed to Kanigiri hospital for treatment where his condition is stated to be critical, the officer said.

"A suicide note was recovered from the spot in which Reddy mentioned that he is taking the extreme step due to grave financial constraints and some family issues," he said.

A case has been lodged in this regard and further investigations are on.