Bhubaneswar: Two final-year medical students of Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR), Sandeep Puri and Monica Meena, lost their lives after drowning in Deba Jharan waterfall at Jujumara in Sambalpur district on Saturday. They were third-year students.
The students, along with four others, had visited the waterfall on bikes, disregarding safety warnings against visiting sensitive and dangerous water bodies like Deba Jharan waterfall, Burla power channel, and Hirakud dam site. While bathing, Sandeep and Monica went missing, prompting their fellow students to alert the fire station personnel.
The rescue team quickly responded, retrieved the bodies, and rushed them to Jujumara health centre, where doctors declared them dead. The college authorities claimed they had no prior knowledge of the students’ plan to visit the waterfall. VIMSAR Superintendent and Dean visited the spot, expressing condolences.
Police reached the Jujumara health centre and seized the bodies for post-mortem examination. The incident has sent shockwaves through the institution.
