East Godavari: The Mahashivratri celebration turned tragic for families of five youths here in Andhra Pradesh as they drowned while bathing in the Godavari River on Wednesday. Bodies of three of the youth were recovered while the search was on for two others, officials said.
According to initial reports, the incident occurred at Talipudi in Tallapudi Mandal of the district when a group of eleven students, aged under 20, crossed the river early in the morning without realising there was a deep stretch ahead. As one of them started to struggle, the others hurried to assist but in their hasty efforts to save each other, the five of them were carried away by the strong currents, and six youths managed to swim to safety.
Locals informed the authorities as soon as they became aware of the incident. With the assistance of deep-sea divers, fire and emergency service personnel, and police, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) initiated the search operation. The bodies of three youths were recovered by the NDRF personnel.
The deceased were identified as P. Durga Prasad (19), P. Sai Krishna, and a 17-year-old juvenile. The search was on for G. Akash (19) and Anishetty Pavan (19). The body of Durga Prasad was shifted to a government hospital for autopsy.
The youth, according to the locals, were intermediate or degree students in Kovvur, Tallapudi, and Rajamahendravaram and hailed from the same village.
As Wednesday was a holiday for their colleges on account of Maha Shivratri, they decided to go to the river for a bath. Survivors said after taking the bath, they had planned to go to a temple for puja on Maha Shivratri, they added.
Meanwhile, families of the missing students rushed to the spot. Senior police and revenue officials were supervising the search operations.
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