Jajpur: In a tragic incident, a Kanwariya drowned in the Baitarani river near Ballabhi ghat in Jajpur district on Sunday.
He has been identified as Prashant Samal, a resident of Purusottampur in Bhadrak district.
Samal visited the ghat to fetch holy water ahead of the auspicious ‘Sravan Sombar’. However, while taking a dip in the river, he slipped into deep water and drowned.
Fire Services personnel rescued Samal and rushed him to the Jajpur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH), where he was declared dead.
According to Anirudh Samal, a relative of the deceased, “Prashant had come to Ballabhi ghat with two friends to collect water for offering at Aradi Shiva shrine in Bhadrak. But while fetching water, he slipped into deep water and drowned despite my attempts to save him.”
Local police seized the body and sent for post-mortem.
