Four children drown while bathing in Ganga; Yogi expresses condolences

Expressing condolences to the bereaved families, Yogi said he was deeply saddened that such a tragic incident occurred on the auspicious occasion of Ram Navami.

In a tragic incident, four children drowned while bathing in the Ganga river at Badpur Ganga Ghat in Manda tehsil of Prayagraj on Friday morning. The deceased were part of a group of seven children from the Bampur Dalit settlement who had gone to the ghat around 11 am. Moments after entering the water, they drifted into a deep patch and began drowning. Hearing their cries, nearby fishermen and villagers rushed into the river and managed to rescue three of them, but four children could not be saved.

Mourning kin of the deceased (HT)

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath, taking cognizance of the tragedy, directed officials to ensure prompt relief efforts. Expressing condolences to the bereaved families, he said he was deeply saddened that such a tragic incident occurred on the auspicious occasion of Ram Navami.

According to local accounts, the group of children included Himanshu, 14, Reyansh, 8, Divyanshu, 16, Rishabh, 10, Deepak, 17, Mohit, 13, and Aman, 9. After entering the water, Reyansh and Aman reportedly drifted into deeper waters and began to drown. When the other children tried to save them, they too got trapped in the strong currents. Local divers succeeded in rescuing Mohit, Divyanshu and Aman, but four others were swept away by the strong water current.

Upon receiving information, police arrived and launched a search operation with the help of divers. The bodies of Deepak and Reyansh were the first to be recovered, while after nearly two hours, the bodies of Himanshu and Rishabh were also pulled from the river. Himanshu and Reyansh, who were among the deceased, were siblings. A large crowd gathered at the ghat as grief-stricken family members struggled to cope with the loss.