The Jalpaiguri District Magistrate, Moumita Godara Basu confirmed the death toll as seven.
"Several people assembled at the Mal river bank at 9 p.m. when the flash flood swept several people. The administration immediately stopped the immersion of idols there. By late Wednesday evening seven bodies had been recovered. Nearly 40 persons have been rescued who were swept by the flash flood and got stuck on a local island," the District Magistrate said.
Flash flood at the Malbazar river during Durga Viserjan. More than 100 people missing. No one knows how many dead! Many trying to save their loved ones! A black day for my home town. We need all your prayers. Pray for us.. pic.twitter.com/RCWwpt5bVW
— Vikram Agarwal (@Vikram_Tub) October 5, 2022
Jalpaiguri's District Police Superintendent, Debarshi Dutta said that initially only two bodies were recovered and as the rescue operations started five more bodies were recovered.
"The rescue operations are being conducted by teams of district police, State Disaster Management Department and the National Disaster Response Force," Dutta added.
However, state police sources said that because of the evening hours, the rescue teams are facing difficulties in the rescue operations.
JALPAIGURI (WEST BENGAL): 7 DEAD & SEVERAL MISSING AFTER WATER LEVEL ROSE DUE TO FLASH FLOOD IN MAL RIVER IN JALPAIGURI DISTRICT DURING IMMERSION. Really Tragic! #BreakingNews #Tragedy #WestBengal pic.twitter.com/2ECf1AmVXS
— Upadhi Gulati (@UpadhiGulati) October 5, 2022
"It will take some more hours, at least till tomorrow morning, to gauge the exact number of casualties and missing persons so far," a district police official said.
He also added that the exact number of missing persons are yet to be ascertained.
The local Trinamool Congress MLA from Mal Assembly constituency, Bulu Chik Baraik said that besides the administration the local people are also assisting the rescue teams in their operations.
"The evening hours are posing difficulty in swift rescue operations," he added.
The incident reported from Kumbharkhan village under Belpada police limits in Bolangir district has spread a pal of gloom in the entire region. The victim has been identified as Biswajit Putel, brother of the deceased Deepak Putel, 25.
According to sources, Deepak had gone for fishing at Cheliamal Dam near Jhankripali village late Wednesday evening.
Unfortunately he drowned in the dam while fishing under mysterious circumstances.
Today morning, locals spotted his floating body and alerted the cops.
On hearing about his brother’s death, Biswajeet was under severe mental pressure.
It is believed that he was unable to come to terms with the loss and consumed poison kept at his house.
His family members rescued him in a critical condition and rushed him to Patnagarh sub-divisional hospital where his condition was stated to be critical, said latest sources.
“We had gone for fishing at Cheliamal Dam. Unfortunately, he drowned and we could not rescue him. Hearing about his brother’s death, his little brother also tried to end his life by consuming poison,” a relative Ramesh Putel said.
Soon his family members launched a frantic search for him and learnt that he had reportedly been swept away in Gangua canal. The boy's family informed the fire brigade personnel who reached the spot immediately and recovered the boy.
He was rushed to a hospital where he was declared brought dead upon arrival. A case has been registered in this connection after the body was sent to Capital Hospital for autopsy.
Worth mentioning, a 15-year-old boy was swept away by stormwater in an open drain in Bhubaneswar last year.
The Sarpanch, Manohar Gadhua, who could not stop his tears from rolling down, said this after as many as four minors including three girls drowned to death after falling into a rainwater-filled pit dug up for road construction work at Majhiguda village under Sadar police station in Koraput district on Thursday.
A pal of gloom descended on the village in the heart-wrenching mishap which has been attributed to negligence in the construction work by the contractor.
As per reports, the road work between Odapur and Majhiguda village was undertaken under the Bharatmala Project when the contractor dug up a huge pit beside the road to extract soil to be used in the road construction.
Sources said, the monsoon rain filled up the pit with water that resembled like a pond in which four kids slipped and drowned to death.
On being informed about the incident, Sadar police and Sub Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) reached the spot and recovered the body. While two kids died on the spot, other two succumbed while being taken to the hospital.
“The contractor never made any effort to drain out the accumulated water in the pit because of which our children drowned today,” said Gadhua.
“We had even informed the Collector about the same two weeks before, but he did not do anything. We demand immediate drainage of water from this pit and appropriate compensation for the families of the deceased.” he said.
Koraput SDPO, Manoj Pujari said, “I reached the spot along with the Sadar Police station officials after being informed about the mishap. We have launched a probe in this connection.”
Meanwhile, Koraput district Collector announced compensation of Rs 4 lakh to the families of each deceased minor, Rs 2000 and Rs 10,000 from Harischandra scheme and Red Cross fund respectively.
The Collector also directed Dasamantapur Tehsildar to initiate action against erring contractor.
According to sources, the three boys identified as Chhotu, Raj and Sahil of Chunabhati Charigharia area were swept away while bathing due to strong current in the river.
Some locals jumped into the river and managed to rescue one of the boys in critical condition while two others are still missing.
ODRAF and Fire personnel reached the spot and launched a rescue operation along with the local residents. Till last reports came in, the search operation was still underway.
Meanwhile, the rescued boy Sahil was declared dead by doctors at the SCB Medical College and Hospital.
Locals alleged the members of ODRAF and Fire Personnel were not serious in carrying out their job. ‘Instead of diving into the water to search the missing boys, they are only surfing the water level to spot any bodies,” alleged a resident of Cuttack.
The missing girl has been identified as Puja.
Sources said the rescued boys are all out of danger. All those involved in the incident are residents of Panposh Padhi Colony, which is not far from the river.
As per reports, the foursome had gone to the river in the afternoon. While enjoying their bath, they slipped on the rocks and were swept away in the current.
Seeing the children drowning, some villagers raised an alarm and called up the Fire Brigade. The villagers too came to the children’s rescue immediately and managed to fish out the three boys within few minutes after the incident. Later, fire personnel reached the spot and joined the villagers in the search and rescue operation to trace the missing girl.
Sources said that the three boys, who know swimming, managed to keep them afloat before they were rescued by the villagers as the water level in the river is low and the current is also slow.
At the time of filing this report, the search operation was still going on.
After the incident, a pall of gloom descended on the locality.
Chittaranjan Pradhan (21), a resident of Patharpunji village in Ranpur Block of Nayagarh, is a former student and staff at the Sri Aurobinda Purnanga Shikshya Kendra in the district. Recently, he had been sent by the school authorities to attend a meditation training programme at Puducherry.
On that fateful evening on January 8, Chittaranjan was taking a stroll on the beach at Puducherry when he heard shrill cries of some people that caught everyone's attention.
Chitta (as Chittaranjan is called by all) saw 3 people battling for their lives while desperately trying to save themselves from drowning in the sea at a distance from the coast. Though some life guards and other people watched the incident with horror, no one dared to come to their rescue. But without wasting time, Chitta jumped into a raging Bay of Bengal and dragged two of them to safety.
Sources said Chitta, in the process, managed to save three-time National Junior Boxing Gold Medalist and 17 year old girl from Coimbatore, Amrita Shivakumaran and her coach Sarbeswaran from the clutches of sure death. However, another champion female Boxer could not be rescued from the watery grave.
Soon after the news of the Chitta's bravery hit the headlines in Tamil Nadu, the Speaker of the State Assembly invited the Odia youth and felicitated him at his residence. Many, including Chitta's colleagues, extended their hearty congratulations to him for his audacious feat. He was accorded a warm welcome on his return to his native town.
Recounting his heroic effort, Chitta said, "I noticed a commotion on the beach and then discovered three people helplessly crying for help as they drowned in the waves. I had no second thoughts in my mind other than saving the three hapless souls. I managed to gather all my strength and pulled one after the other to safety, but unfortunately, I could not rescue the third girl."
The headmistress of his Sri Aurobinda Purnanga Shikshya Kendra, Pushpanjali Sahoo lauded Chitta for showing valour in the face of dread.
Survivor Amrita also showered praises on Chitta for saving their lives. “Chitta Bhaiya (brother) dragged me and my coach who was also drowning to safety.
However, by the time he tried to pull out the other girl, she had slipped much deeper into the water. So she could not be saved. I will always remain grateful to Chitta Bhaiya. Had he not appeared as a God for us, who knows if we would have been alive?"
At the Arwal ghat when some women of the village went to the Sone river to take a holy dip after the Jeutia festival the acccident took place. They were accompanied by their children.
Jeutia is celebrated in Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh when women fast for the long life of their children. The 24 hour-fast is followed by the holy dip in any water body.
The police said due to heavy illegal sand mining by mafia the children misjudged the depth of the river and were drowned.
"The women taking the holy dip managed to fish out 6 children. They rushed them to the Sadar hospital Arwal where 4 of them succumbed. The condition of two of the children is serious," said RC Singh, an ASI of Aganoor police post of Arwal district.
The other incident took place in Dumra village of Siwan, where two persons, including a 14-year-old child drowned in a pond. The adult was a woman identified as Surjato Devi while the child, Sumit Manjhi. Surjato, while taking a bath in the pond located at Dumra Sati Mata temple, went deep inside and started drowning. Sumit jumped in to rescue her but failed. He also drowned.
"We have fished out both the dead bodies with the help of villagers and sent them for autopsy in Sadar hospital," said DP Singh, SHO of Jamo police station.
It is suspected that the visual is of a drowning case that was reported on December 28 when a student of Madhupatna Sai Sikhshya Kendra, Rohan Mishra, had gone missing after falling into the water.
As per reports, Rohan, a resident of Nuapada, had visited the spot along with his batchmates for a picnic. In the video, many onlookers could be seen standing helpless while the youth is swept away in strong water current.
Despite intense search and rescue operations by Fire Services personnel in Bhimkund area, body of the victim could not be fished out.
In Angul, two sisters reportedly met their watery grave while taking bath in a pond. The deceased have been identified as Runu and Jhunu Sahoo. Sources said both the sisters were taking bath in a pond nearby their house. While one of them is believed to have drowned after slipping, the other drowned while trying to save the former, informed sources.
Moreover, in Salijanga under Raghunathpur Police limits of Jagatsighpur district, a two-year-old-child drowned in a rivulet. The deceased has been identified as Chandrasekhar, son of Amiya Bhanja, a resident of the Salijanga village. According to reports, the child fell into the rivulet while playing. The boy was rescued and rushed to Radhua primary health centre in a critical condition. After his condition deteriorated, he was shifted to Raghunathpur community health centre, where doctors declared him brought-dead.
Similarly, in Anandpur of Keonjhar district, an old lady drowned in Baitarani River.
The deceased has been identified as Anshuman Das, a student of Kendriya Vidyalaya, whose body was fished out near Hanuman mandir. Yesterday, two other students were rescued in critical condition.
Reportedly, students of several schools along with activists and volunteers of various organisations had congregated to celebrate Swachh Bharat programme organised by Paradip Municipality on the beach.
The mishap took place during a meeting organised at the Beach Festival Mandap when the three students went deep into the sea while playing near the waters. Eye witnesses spotted the students crying for help and immediately informed the life guards.
A rescue operation was launched by CISF personnel, Fire Brigade as well as the local fishermen to trace the missing student. During the rescue operation, six coast guard personnel had a narrow escape after their motor boat developed technical glitches and capsized in the sea.
As per reports, a group of eight students had left home for their coaching classes yesterday night and midway decided to go to the channel for a bath. Three of them dived into the water body and subsequently got pulled into the deep waters.
After getting information about the incident, the Fire Department personnel reached the spot and launched a rescue operation during which one student was rescued alive. The bodies of two others were fished out subsequently. The rescued student is in a good condition, informed the doctors.
An official of the Fire Department said, "Two students had drowned by the time we reached there. However, we managed to rescue one student after using scuba equipment."
"My son along with his friends had gone to attend coaching classes yesterday night but did not return till morning. Later, I was informed that my son had drowned," father of one of the deceased student said.
Fire Service personnel who managed to fish out the boys rushed them to the Capital hospital here where doctors declared them brought dead.
According to reports, the two Class IX students of Govt Boys’ High School Unit-9 identified as Jagamohan Sahoo and Sathik Digal had left home for school in their uniforms.
However, it is yet to known why and how they reached the bridge. As per reports, six of the students were taking bath near the bridge when two of them went missing.
The Fire Service personnel, during the search operation rescued another woman who attempted suicide by jumping into the river. She was taken to the hospital for treatment.
The deceased have been identified as Lija Rani Mallick (9), daughter of Judhistir Mallick of Gajrajpur village and Ruparani Sethi (11), daughter of Akhay Sethi of Kandiria village. Ruparani was staying at her uncle's house at Gajrajpur, informed sources.
Sources said both the girls had gone to a nearby pond to take bath at around 1.30 PM when the incident took place. After the duo didn't return, the family searched for them and rescued them from the pond. They were rushed to Rajkanika community health centre (CHC), where doctors at the hospital declared them dead.
It is suspected that while taking bath, one of the girls may have slipped into the water, following which the other girl might have drowned in a bid to save the former.
The first incident was reported from Orami village under Narayangarh panchayat of Khurda district where two girls, reportedly sisters, drowned while taking bath in a village pond.
A pall of gloom descended in the village as the two had been on a vacation to their uncle's house when the incident occurred.
In another incident, two minor girls drowned while taking bath in a canal in Audipara village under the jurisdiction of Lamtaput police station of Koraput district today. The deceased have been identified as Kabita (10) and Tulasi (8), daughters of Jenua Badanayak of the village.
As per sources, the two minors had gone to a nearby agriculture field with their parents when accidentally they slipped and fell into the canal. Though the girls were rescued in a critical condition and rushed to Asha Kiran Hospital, the doctors there declared them brought dead.
Getting information, Lamptaput police rushed to the hospital and recovered the bodies of the girls. "A case of unnatural death has been registered. The bodies were recovered and sent for post mortem," said a police official.
A class XII student of Guru Nanak Public School drowned in Koel River at Baikuntha ghat in Rourkela while taking bath in with his two friends today. The deceased has been identified as Debidutta Sahu.
According to reports, Sahu was dragged deep into the waters by strong currents. Other two students were rescued by locals who rushed to the sport after seeing the boys drowning.
"Usually the boys come to the river after playing cricket. One of them slipped and died after drowning while two others were rescued. Though they had not ventured deep into the river, it is suspected that the mishap occurred when they were playing with a ball in the river," said Prakash Chandra Sahu, a local resident.
In another incident, two persons are still missing after they were swept away into the sea by strong currents at Talsari beach near Shankarpur of Balasore district.
Sources said seven persons were taking bath in the sea when three of them drowned. Locals managed to rescue one person while two others are still missing.
Though a massive search operation has been launched by Marine Police, the two missing persons are yet to be traced.
Two of the three deceased have been identified as Seeta, daughter of Chhunaku Oram and Anjana, daughter of Siba Oram of Deogarh district.
According to sources, Seeta and Anjana, who happened to be relatives, of Singhasakha Village under Barkote police limits had gone to a nearby pond for bathing at around 1 pm. The duo later slipped into the water and drowned while taking bath in the pond. Later, the dead bodies were fished out from the water body by locals after an hour.
On receiving information, police rushed to the spot and have started investigation.
Similarly, a seven-year-old girl swept away by water current in the Left Canal of the Indravati Irrigation project at Jalatamunda village under Kokasara block in Kalahandi district.
As per sources, the three have been identified as Jagannath Boitai (15), Diptiranjan Boitai (17) and Pradeep Bal (20), all residents of Boitai Sahi.
Sources informed that the trio went missing after getting trapped in a pit created by sand mafia after mining.
One of the boys was rescued by locals and admitted to a nearby hospital where he breathed his last. The dead body of the other two were recovered one hour later, added sources.
In Ganjam district, one person got drowned in Gopalpur sea at the Haripur Ghat while two others went missing in the sea following Holi celebrations in the city. The deceased was identified as P Sidhant Patro of Sano Bazar area in Berhampur.
As per sources, 19 persons from the area had gone to take bath in the sea after the celebrations. While the body of Patro was fished out, two others from the group are still missing, sources added.
"Around 19-20 friends had gone to Gopalpur after playing Holi. Four of them went into the sea while others were still standing at the beach. Of the four, one was pushed by the tides while Sidhant was rescued almost after an hour. Two others are still missing," Sidhant's father Bishnu Patro said.
In a similar incident, one Raja Swain of Kushapangi village died after he drowned in Mahanadi River at the Banki Kaliprasad Ghat. Raja had gone to take bath in the river after celebrating Holi and reportedly drowned at the Ghat.
According to reports, nearly 40 students of IIIT in Gothapatna on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar came here on a pleasure trip today when the two students went to take bath near Mahanadi river mouth, close to Nehru Bangla.
The duo, identified as Himanshu Rathore and Srinath Ghose of Bhopal, was reportedly dragged into the deep sea by a huge tide. While locals rescued Ghose, Rathore remained untraceable for several hours.
Later, though Rathore was also rescued and rushed to Biju Memorial Hospital here, he was declared brought dead.
According to reports, the youths had gone to the river to take bath and were later swept away by the strong current of the river.
The matter came to light after some locals found the bodies floating in the river and informed the fire brigade officials.
A team of fire fighters from Muniguda immediately swung into action and later fished out the bodies from the river.
Further details in connection with the incident are awaited.
The missing youths, identified as Pradeep Mohanty of Aska and Ajay Suasia of Dharakote were students of a Chennai-based engineering college.
Pradeep and Ajay accompanied by four other friends had gone to the beach at around 11 am on Monday to celebrate New Year. The duo went into the sea to take bath while the four others were on the beach. After some time when the two did not return, their friends suspected something wrong.
On receiving information, local police and fire brigade units launched searches to locate the missing students. However, Pradeep and Ajay could not be traced till last evening.
https://youtu.be/OVVpx2fobQ4
According to sources, the two women slipped from the hanging bridge while taking a selfie and fell into the Nagavali river. The two are identified to be the residents of Andhra Pradesh.
On receiving information, a fire brigade team rushed to the spot and fished out the dead bodies.
More detail awaited.
The incident occurred at around 10 am when three students from CDA had come to the ghat for taking bath in the river. Two students—Subhankar Panda and Pritam Sethi drowned after they slipped and were dragged inside by strong currents of the river.
Sources said that mishap occurred when the group was taking pictures while taking bath in the river.
The incident has once again raised concern as drowning incidents continue to be reported at regular intervals despite rigorous campaigns by the district administration in Cuttack.
Though warning boards have been installed, people continue to risk thier lives by defying such orders.
Meanwhile, three special teams of CDA and Cuttack fire stations and ODRAF have launched a massive rescue operation to trace the missing boys. So far, the teams have managed to fish out the body of one of the missing boys.
Also Read: Tourists saved from drowning by lifeguards at Puri sea beach
https://youtu.be/-hwUMW90Y3M
The deceased, identified as Bijuli Munda and Rani Munda of the village, aged 3 and 4 respectively, had gone missing since last evening.
Family members searched the girls frantically and later bodies of the duo were found floating in the pond.
As per some villagers, both the girls were seen decorating a puja pandal nearby the pond in the afternoon.
After receiving information, police reached the spot and took the bodies for post mortem.
https://youtu.be/07CxtB7ZH1o
The deceased has been identified as Pradyut Barik, a resident of the Chhend colony.
The incident occurred when four minor boys went to the river to take bath. Suddenly, the river water current swept away the four children.
After receiving information, fire personnel and police reached the spot and rescued one of the boys, Panchanan Behera. The rescued boy was admitted to hospital and his condition is stated to be stable. One more boy managed to swim ashore whereas the two others were pulled into water by the river current. Though the dead body of one of them was found, till the filing of this report, rescue operations were on to trace the fourth boy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFJxvdqbx8g
The third one was rescued by locals.
The mishap took place when the three students, who had gone to the spot for a picnic, went into the sea to take bath.
The Mangala river mouth is around seven km away from the Puri town.
While taking bath, a high wave dragged the two tourists to the sea. The life guards on duty, being informed immediately went on rescue operation. The tourists were safely rescued and brought to the shore from the sea by the lifeguards.
Speaking on the arrangements for the protection of tourists at sea beach, Superintendent Of Police, Puri District, Sarthak Sarangi informed that 180 lifeguards and two platoon police force have been deployed by the administration for the safety and protection of tourists visiting Puri sea beach.
The deceased were identified as Sushant Mishra and brothers Hitesh and Asit, sons of Kishore Hota. The incident occurred near Jhankaani temple on the lower catchment of the Hirakud dam, where Kishore, a teacher by profession, and his colleague Sushant had gone to take bath.
Kishore’s two sons, who had also gone there to take bath, slipped and were swept away by the water current. Kishore’s friend Sushant also drowned while trying to rescue the two.
According to sources, both the girls had been to the pond to take a bath but drowned there. Both were minors. Locals looked into the pond when both girls did not return for few hours.
The deceased were identified as Ruchi Nayak (8) and her elder sister Ranjit Nayak (9). The dead bodies were later fished out of the water body with the help of locals.
A fire brigade team rushed to the spot and launched a search operation last night. Though the deadbody of one of them was recovered from the river today, efforts are on to trace the other one, said a fire brigade official.
According to sources four youths had gone to the river to take bath Monday afternoon. However, two of them, a Matriculate student and an ITI student, reportedly have drowned in the river.
Police are investigating into the incident.
As per Odisha’s government’s own admission, sea-bath tragedies have shot up in Pilgrim Township in the past years leading researchers to believe that sea has turned wobbly and unsteady.
The pristine sea beach has turned unsafe for humans with spurt in drowning cases with 36 cases of human casualties have been reported in period spanning from 2013-2016.
The breakup of drowning in Puri sea beach is 2014- 8, 2015- 11 and 2016- 18, the minister for Tourism and Culture, Ashok Panda told the state assembly replying a question by a member.
As tourists throw caution into winds and take bath in unsteady seawaters, their plunge is turning fatal.
The human toll could have been much on higher side. But the local sea-going fishermen, locally called ‘nolias’, have saved precious lives by timely leap into the sea.
The popular beach which is a favoured destination for both domestic and international tourists has virtually turned into a watery graveyard for various reasons. And prominent among them is increase in the roughness of the sea close to the Puri coastline in the recent years. To add to this, cavalier attitude of tourists in dipping in vulnerable sea zones and absence of adequate safety measures on part of government machineries aggravate the situation further.
The minister Panda however pointed out the Puri district administration rose to the occasion in ensuring the safety of tourists.
As many as 266 nolias have been deployed for safe sea-bath in Puri beach. These life saviours were also covered under insurance cover with the government bearing the premium payment. The nolias are doing a noble service by saving many people from meeting watery grave, he said.
The Puri district administration has identified as susceptible sea zones where sea-bath tragedies are recurring. It has put in place signposts and billboards in these places issuing statutory warning on sea bath. However people are exposing themselves to watery onslaught by venturing into unsteady seawaters, the minister Panda added.
Residents of the temple township are peeved over the absence of required safety measures for tourists.
“The government agencies are watching silently as sea is consuming human lives steadily. Though are doing an excellent jobs, there is the need for engaging skilled and trained rescue divers. As the number of people taking sea bath runs to thousands every day, more trained people should be on the job from dawn to dusk to ensure safe sea-bath”, remarked a resident of Puri township, Harekrushna Mishra.
The victim has been identified as Aparna Priyadarsahi, a class six student of a local school. Ironically the mishap took place when she was learning swimming in the presence of an instructor.
The death of the girl has sent shockwaves across the port township as mishap of this nature at the elite club is said to be first-of-its kind. The drowning of the girl despite the presence of the instructor has raised safety concerns at the club’s swimming pool.
The victim, whose father Sankar Swain works in Paradip Port, was rushed to government-run Biju Memorial Hospital where medicos declared her brought dead. The police have registered a case under the Criminal CrPC 174 (unnatural death). “We are investigating the case,” said the Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) in Paradip, Gadadhar Pradhani.
All the victims were either minors or youngsters who had gone to water bodies to take bath after playing Holi.
In Kendrapara, two boys drowned in a pond at Patkura. The deceased have been identified as Niranjan Nayak (12) of Basudeipur and Deepak Sutar (12) of Chanpur village.
Another 9-year-old minor also met watery grave in Hansipatna village in Balasore district. The deceased identified as Saiswarup Rout.
According to reports, the mishap occurred when Rout along with three of his friends had gone to the village pond to take bath after Holi celebrations.
The minors somehow slipped into the pond and though the villagers had rushed the trio to the hospital after rescuing them, Rout was declared dead by the doctors at Soro hospital.
In Bhubaneswar, a minor also died after drowning at a pond at GGP Colony. Two other persons went missing while taking bath in Kuakhai River near Bankuala of Balianta and search operations were on to find the missing duo.
In another tragic incident, a first engineering student of Saranga Engineering College also died after drowning in Bramhani river near PHD Pump House at Angul.
The deceased have been identified as Alok Jena from Sambalpur.
Also Read: Woman arrested for drowning daughters to death
According to sources, Alok was a B-Tech student studying in a Bhubaneswar-based engineering college.
Notably, in November 2014, the officials of the foundation had gone for a picnic at Nagabali river with some small children. One of the children identified as Asim Jilakira was swept away in the river and died. Following the incident, Asim’s father lodged a complaint against Nargis and secretary of the foundation Jual Rajgupta.
Hearing the case, the SDJM court pronounced the judgment sentencing Nargis to a prison term of 1 year along with fine. The court, however, acquitted Jual Rajgupta due to lack of evidence.
"Jual Rajgupta was acquitted by the Court due to lack of evidence while Nargis K. Asthari was awarded 1 year jail term and Rs 3 lakh fine to be paid to the kin of the victim," said public prosecutor, Sachidananda Khadanga.
Rabindra Jena of Baunsaadia village under Kharasahapur Panchayat in Bahanaga block of Balasore district drowned in a pond while sailing paper boats. He was rescued by his parents and villager and was taken to the nearby Gopalpur health centre, where the doctors pronounced him dead.
A girl from Chotakanpur village under Nilagiri block in Balasore district also drowned during the Kartik Purnima celebrations.
Similarly, two boys drowned in Rankala and Nirarala villages respectively in Patkura area of Kendrapara district while collecting boats from a water body.
Moreover, another boy drowned in pond in Kaladia village under Aul block.
Reports said Biswajit Bhattacharya of Veer Bhumi area of West Bengal was taking bath at New Marine beach near Swargadwar when a strong undercurrent dragged him into the deep waters. At this the Life Guards, present at the beach rescued him and rushed to the district headquarters hospital where the doctors pronounced him as ‘brought dead’.
Another tourist from West Bengal also met the same fate while taking bath near the Light House beach when a big tide pushed him to the deep waters. By the time the local fishermen rescued him he was dead.
Also read: Shocking! Mother drowns 3 children to death!
Notably, four persons have drowned in the sea in the pilgrim town in four days due to high tide.
The bodies have been identified as those of Srusti Pal, Sandeep Kumar and Pritam Priyadarshi, all of them students of National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) in Bhubaneswar.
Reports said the three students, who had come to the city on a fun trip this morning, went to Gadagadia Ghat for a bath. While taking bath, they slipped into deep waters. Some locals present at the spot tried their best to rescue them but in vain as the students were swept away by the strong current.
Following information, Fire Services personnel rushed to the spot. After an hour-long search operation, they fished out the bodies of the three students. While one of the students was already dead, the two other students were rushed to SCB Medical College and Hospital where the doctors pronounced them ‘brought dead’.
Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has registered 1292 deaths due to drowning in three years, with an average of almost 431 deaths per annum, informed Special Relief Commissioner office and Disaster Management Secretary, B P Sethi on Tuesday.
This is an average of three years between 2015-16 and 2017-18.
While 246 cases of drowning were reported in 2015-16, it went up to 428 in 2016-17 and 618 in 2017-18. This, however, did not include drowning deaths during floods as such cases were reported as flood related deaths, he said.
Balasore district recorded the highest 129 cases of drowning during the three years, followed by 118 cases in Bhadrak and 103 in Jajpur.
Most of the drowning deaths occurred during the months of July to November, the official said adding that out of 1292 cases during last three years, 783 deaths, which is about 61 percent, have occurred during these five months.
The highest number of deaths due to drowning were reported in September which is 197, followed by 192 in August and 150 in October.
While most of the drowning cases are linked to monsoon, many died while taking bath in the sea at the three major beaches at Puri, Konark and Gopalpur, the official said.
The beaches between Puri and Konark have been experiencing high tide since the tsunami hit the South East Coast of India in 2004. High tides had also become a regular feature in Gopalpur.
"The state government has included drowning deaths in the list of State Specific Disaster in order to provide financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh each to the victims' families.Odisha has announced eight natural calamities as State Specific Disasters. They are drowning, lightning, whirlwind, tornado, heavy rain, sunstroke, boat accident, and snakebite," Sethi added.
Talcher: Two school students drowned while taking bath in Brahmani river at Talcher in Angul district today.
The 11th standard students of the DAV School in MCL Jagannath area drowned after being pulled by strong current in the river while taking bath at Paschimeswar Ghat, police said.
The grils were identified as Pratikshya, daughter of Sanjay Pradhan and Ramakanta Pradhan's daughter Pravati. They were students of standard two at Greenfield School at Hadapadia.
Police said that one girl had slipped into the pond and the another died trying to rescue her. The fire brigade personnel recovered the bodies from the water after a two-hour operation.
The bodies have been sent for postmortem, Sadar Police Station IIC Satish Nayak said.
Both were students of Gumadera Project School under Belpahar Municipality limits. According to reports, Yadav was a class four student while Suna was studying in seventh standard.
The incident occurred when the duo had gone to pond near their school for a bath, sources said.
Following the incident, three teachers of the school were dismissed by Block Education Officer (BEO).
The deceased have been identified as Jyotiranjan Sahoo, a +3 student at Nimapada Autonomous College and Kamal Lochan Jena, a class 10th student of Nimapada DAV School. The details of the third person are yet to be ascertained.
As per reports, all three students were taking bath near Balighat area in the river when they went missing. Later local villagers and fire fighters launched a search and rescue operation and fished out the bodies of the deceased.
It is suspected that the students who drowned might have been pulled into the strong current of the river forming due to large scale excavation of sand from the area.
The mishap occurred while the duo, Sheetal Baghel (19) and Tanisa Baghel (13) had gone to their village pond to take bath along with their grandmother.
The two girls accidentally slipped into deep water while their grandmother was at the shore of the pond. Despite attempts to save the drowning girls, she could not rescue them.
Later, with the help of some local residents, the bodies of the girls were fished out of the pond.
According to information from family members, the two sisters were staying in Raipur of Chhattisgarh and had visited the maternal uncle’s house in Nuapada yesterday.
As per reports, one Sili Behera and two other girls had gone to the river bank near the village to collect water for performing Khudurukuni Puja. While fetching water, they were swept away by strong current of the river. Following the incident, some locals informed the Fire services department personnel who sprang into action & rescued two girls.
According to the latest report, a rescue operation by the Fire services personnel is currently underway to locate the missing girl.
As per reports, while taking bath a girl slipped and fell into the river following which some other girls present near the spot attempted to rescue her but they also drowned. After hearing screams, some locals rushed to the spot and rescued five girls, however, one of them could not be traced.
Following the incident, a rescue operation was launched by Fire Services personnel to trace the missing girl.
All the rescued girls are said to be residents of Dhobapada and Sahibangla area of the district.
"In an attempt to rescue one girl, four to five girls went into the river following which they also drowned. Later, some people rescued them," said an eyewitness.