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Five students drown to death at Devgad beach; academy founder booked for negligence
The Devgad police along with local fishermen, scuba divers and district disaster management teams, launched a search for Dicholkar Sunday morning
The Devgad police on Sunday booked Nitin Gangadhar Mane, 40, founder of Sankalp Sainik Academy, Nigdi, which offers training for competitive examinations; and Sakharam Bapu Tambe, 45, bus operator from Pune, in connection with the death by drowning of five students.
According to the complainant, Rahul Pandurang Galate, 46, from Bhimshakti Nagar, Chikhli, whose daughter, Ankita Rahul Galate, 18, was among the students who drowned to death in the incident, Mane had organised a trip to Devgad beach, Sindhudurg district, on Saturday. “Mane took along his relatives on the trip and did not provide life jackets to his students. The bus (being driven by Tambe) halted at a beach spot. Without gauging the level of water, Mane let the students venture into the sea. It was due to his negligence that the students drowned to death,” Rahul Galate said in his complaint.
Rahul Galate’s daughter, and three other female students – Prerana Suresh Dongare, 22; Anisha Nitin Padwal, 17; and Payal Raju Bansode – all drowned to death. The four girls were among the seven students who had ventured into the sea at around 3.30 pm on Saturday. Eyewitnesses informed the police that no sooner the youngsters entered the water, they started drowning. Hearing their cries for help, locals, along with a lifeguard, initiated a rescue operation and rescued six students. However, four out of the six rescued students – all girls – were declared dead before arrival by Dr Vitakar at the rural hospital in Devgad. The remaining two students are still undergoing treatment at the hospital. Whereas the single remaining male student by the name Ramchandra Ghanshyam Dicholkar, 18, who had also entered the sea along with the others, could not be found.
The Devgad police along with local fishermen, scuba divers and district disaster management teams, launched a search for Dicholkar Sunday morning. Dicholkar’s dead body was found nearly 24 hours after his disappearance, at around 4 pm on Sunday. Along with the recovery of Dicholkar’s dead body, the death toll in the incident has risen to five. A group of 32 students and staff were part of the Devgad trip on Saturday.
Tehsildar Ramesh Pawar said, “After relentless efforts by all the teams, we recovered the dead body of the missing boy on Sunday at around 4 pm. After completion of post-mortem and other formalities, all the dead bodies were handed over to their respective families on Sunday. Ambulances were made available to ferry the mortal remains to the respective native places.”
Nilkanth Bagale, senior police inspector at Devgad police station, said, “The students could not fathom the depth of the sea even as they ventured deep inside…”
Bagale further said, “We also found that Tambe was driving the bus without a valid RTO permission or related documents for transporting students in his bus. Hence, we have registered an FIR against him as well.”
A case has been registered against both Mane and Tambe under sections 304(a) (causing death by negligence) and 34 of the Indian Penal Code and sections 66/192 (A) of the Motor Vehicles Act. The accused were arrested and produced in court. They were granted bail in this case.
