A tragic incident occurred on Tuesday morning at Gandhi Ghat under the Pirbahore police station area in Patna, where three individuals, including two teenagers, lost their lives after drowning in the Ganga river. Two others were rescued by the prompt efforts of the district administration and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF).
Victims Identified
The deceased have been identified as Chandan Kumar (34), son of Om Prakash Gupta, a resident of Dariyapur Gola in Kadamkuan area; Amit Kumar (17), son of Ranjit Kumar, a resident of RMS Colony, Kankarbagh; and Samar Pratap (14), son of Shashi Ranjan, a resident of Baisa, Khagaria district. Samar was staying in Patna’s Ashok Nagar at the time of the incident.
Rescued Individuals
The two rescued persons include Amit’s cousin Joy (16) and another teenager, both residents of Kankarbagh’s RMS Colony. They were saved due to the quick reaction of boatmen and the SDRF team.
Sequence of Events
The incident took place around 9 a.m. when five people were bathing in the river. According to eyewitnesses, one of them ventured into deep water and began drowning. In an attempt to save him, the others also entered deeper waters and were caught in the strong current.
The district administration acted swiftly. Patna District Magistrate Thiyagarajan SM stated: “Five youths started drowning in the Ganga river at Gandhi Ghat. The district administration acted swiftly and with the help of SDRF rescued two teenagers. The circle officer and sub-divisional officer, Patna Sadar, have been directed to provide all possible assistance to the affected families at the earliest as per the laid down provisions.”
Recovery of Bodies
The bodies of the three deceased were recovered from the river and handed over to their families after necessary formalities and postmortem. Additional SHO of Pirbahore police station, Madhurendra Kumar, informed that the SDRF team was already engaged in searching for the body of a man who had jumped into the Ganga from Marine Drive late Monday night. He said, “As soon as we recovered that body, we received information about another tragedy at Gandhi Ghat. The team immediately rushed to the ghat, but three people could not be saved.”
The district administration has assured full support to the bereaved families. This incident highlights the dangers of bathing in the river without proper knowledge of water currents and depth.
