Four drown in Nuh’s Kotla lake after their leisure boat capsizes

Four persons, two of them minor boys, drowned in Nuh’s Kotla lake on Tuesday afternoon after their boat capsized in the middle of the lake while they were allegedly clicking selfies

Four persons, two of them minor boys, drowned in Nuh’s Kotla lake on Tuesday afternoon after their boat capsized in the middle of the lake while they were allegedly clicking selfies. A fifth person on the boat swam to safety and raised the alarm after which villagers informed the police.

Four drown in Nuh’s Kotla lake after their leisure boat capsizes

Though police and rescue teams from the fire station reached the spot immediately, they were unable to save the four who went under water, said police.

The village Kotila is located more than 60 kilometres from Gurugram. Police identified the deceased as Mustaq (23), Sakib (17), Sahil (12), residents of Akeda village, and Nazakat (21), resident of Singleheri village.

Police said Yasir Khan (16), a resident of Akeda village, was the only one from the group to survive the accident. Police said while Mustaq was a private clinic operator, the other four were students.

Sakib and Sahil were brothers and studied in class 10 and 8, respectively. Nazakat was also a student who was visiting his relatives in Akeda village and joined his cousin for boating on Tuesday, said police.

Police said the friends went to the lake around 3pm and took a boat on rent from the banks.

Usha Kundu, additional superintendent of police, Nuh, said when the boat reached the middle of the lake, the friends started clicking selfies on their phones, causing the boat to lose its balance and capsize. “We received information around 4pm after which police teams and fire tenders were sent to the spot,” she said.

Police also took the help of local divers to trace the boys who disappeared under water and it was they who found them within the hour.

Kundu said they were taken to the nearest hospital where doctors declared them dead on arrival. “During preliminary investigation, we found that the boat belonged to one of the villagers and the deceased were not wearing safety jackets. Bodies will be handed over to the family members after autopsy,” she said.