Daijiworld Media Network - Ponda
Ponda, Jun 22: Two 17-year-old cousins drowned while swimming in a river at Tambdimol in Collem on Sunday, just eight days after four youngsters died in a similar tragedy in the same village.
The deceased have been identified as Shivlingappa Manjunath Dandin, a resident of Gandhinagar in Collem, and Sagar Basavraj Dandin from Bagalkot. Both teenagers had recently passed their Class X examinations and were preparing to begin their higher secondary studies.
According to police, Sagar had travelled to Collem to spend his vacation with relatives. On Sunday morning, the two cousins left home after informing family members that they were going out to play and later headed to the river, accompanied by Shivlingappa’s younger brother.
While they were in the water, the younger boy noticed the two teenagers struggling and immediately ran back home to alert Shivlingappa’s father, Manjunath.
With the assistance of local residents, Manjunath rushed to the riverbank and pulled both boys out of the water before notifying the police.
The teenagers were taken to the Primary Health Centre in Dharbandora, where doctors declared them brought dead.
Their bodies have been kept at the mortuary of the South Goa District Hospital in Margao. Post-mortem examinations will be conducted after members of Sagar’s family arrive from Bagalkot.
Collem Police Station has registered a case of unnatural death under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
The latest incident has renewed concerns over safety at local water bodies, especially as it comes barely a week after another fatal accident in Collem.
On June 13, four friends, including three siblings, drowned in the Collem river near Metawada Bridge. Two of the siblings were students at an Industrial Training Institute and had visited the river before the commencement of the new academic session.
The back-to-back tragedies have sparked calls for stronger safety measures and increased monitoring around vulnerable river stretches in the area.