Six students drown in rivulet, bodies retrieved

Six students, who went for a swim in Pedda Vagu, a rivulet, in Vasantawada village in the mandal in Agency space, drowned on Wednesday.

Villagers of Bhudevipeta went for ‘vana bhojanams’ into the forests to have fun the conclusion of Dasara festivities. The students, went into rivulet,which was in spate. As they reportedly didn’t know swimming, they drowned.

The victims have been recognized as Ganagdhara Venkataramana (17), Sriramula Shiva (17), Kunavarapu Radhakrishna (16), Killa Sai (17), Gottiparthi Major (16) and Karnati Ranjith (16), all natives of Bhudevipeta hamlet, mentioned Integrated Tribal Development Authority Project Officer R.V. Suryanarayana.

On receiving data, police rushed to the spot and launched a seek for the lacking students. Expert swimmers retrieved the bodies after just a few hours, the Velerupadu police mentioned.

Overflowing

The rivulet (Pedda Vaagu) was overflowing resulting from heavy rains that had been lashing for the previous few days, mentioned residents of Vasantawada.

While the ladies in the households have been cooking, just a few youth crossed Pedda Vagu, to fetch water. While returning, one teenager slipped and fell in waters. To save him, 5 of his buddies jumped into the water and have been reportedly swept away, mentioned West Godavari district Superintendent of Police K. Narayan Naik, who visited the spot.

“Post-mortem was conducted on the bodies at the spot. Later, police handed over the bodies to the family members,” the SP mentioned.

Governor expresses grief

Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan expressed grief over the demise of the students. He conveyed condolences to the bereaved households.

The students have been learning Intermediate and different programs in completely different faculties, Mr. Suryanarayana mentioned. The Velerupadu police registered a case and took up investigation. A pall of gloom descended in Bhudevipeta and Vasantawada villages.