On the occasion of Guru Purnima, a tragic incident occurred today in Nodakhali, South 24 Parganas, where four teenagers drowned while bathing in the Ganges. All four were school students, two of them from the same family. According to police sources, the incident took place around 7.30 am. Eyewitnesses reported that one boy started drowning while bathing at the Biralapur Jetty Ghat, prompting the other three to jump into the river to save him. However, none of them could be rescued even after several hours.
Fire brigade personnel and police from Nodakhali station visited the spot. All four boys were residents of the Birlapur Jute Mill area. The missing teenagers have been identified as Dipu Kumar Saha (16), Pintu Kumar Saha (14), Deepak Mahato (15), and Bibhas Kumar Saha (16). Initial search efforts were conducted using boats. A disaster response team has been requested to join the rescue operation.
Earlier, on bhai phonta, a similar incident occurred at Camp Ghat in Khardah, North 24 Parganas, where two young men drowned in the Ganges. Local sources reported that four young men slipped into the river while bursting firecrackers on the bank. While two managed to swim back, the other two drowned, and their bodies were later recovered. On the same day, an elderly woman drowned near Millennium Park. The 55-year-old woman, Shefali Kar from Santragachi, Howrah, was visiting the park with her husband, daughter, and son-in-law. While returning around 6 pm, she slipped and fell into the gap between a launch and the jetty, drowning in the river.