Mayurbhanj: In a heart-wrenching incident fire service personnel recovered the bodies of two Plus II Science students who drowned during immersion of Lord Biswakarma idol at Kathapala check dam under Betnoti police limits during Lord Vishwakarma idol immersion, on Tuesday.
The victims have been identified as Thakur Soren from the Badampahar area’s Bhandan village and Bhagya Prakash Patra from the Toto area’s Badagaon village.
According to reports, the students were part of a group that had gone to immerse the Lord Biswakarma idol. While their friends were taken to the hospital due to illness, Thakur and Bhagya, who stayed in the hostel, joined their classmates for the immersion ceremony.
Eyewitnesses stated that Bhagya accidentally slipped into the water while immersing the idol. Thakur jumped to rescue him but unfortunately, both were swept away by the strong currents due to heavy rainfall.
Fire service personnel rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation. After three hours of operation, fire brigade officials fished out the bodies of Thakur and Bhagya.
It may be mentioned that this incident occurred four days after two OAV students drowned in the Subarnarekha River.
The tragic event has sent shockwaves in the locality.
