Daijiworld Media Network - Canacona

Canacona, Apr 26: A tragic incident unfolded in Canacona on Saturday afternoon, where two young boys lost their lives after drowning in a river at Ozrem, Dhupemol.

The victims, identified as Dhruv Wadkar (5) from New Vaddem, Dhupemol, and Rigved Naik (10), a native of Karwar, had reportedly left their homes without informing their families to bathe in the river.

Police said the incident came to light around 1:09 pm after a call was received from PCR in Margao. According to initial findings, the children had walked nearly half a kilometre to reach the river. While two of them entered the water and drowned, another child present managed to return and alert family members. Some locals claimed that as many as four children had gone to the river unsupervised.

Residents later retrieved the boys from the water and rushed them to the Community Health Centre in Canacona, where doctors declared them brought dead.

The bodies were sent for post-mortem, which confirmed the cause of death as asphyxia due to drowning. Police have registered a case of unnatural death and stated that no foul play is suspected at this stage.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the children had entered the river for bathing when the tragedy occurred. Authorities are continuing their probe.

Meanwhile, locals have raised concerns about a sudden increase in the river’s water level, possibly caused by the release of water from an upstream bundh, which they believe may have contributed to the incident.