Seven drown during Durga idol immersion

Seven people have been feared drowned in different parts of the during the Durga Idol immersion on Saturday evening. Rescue operations continued till late in the night as out of seven, only six bodies could be recovered so far.

According to fire officials, a call was received from North-East Delhi’s Sonia Vihar area where a 13-year-old boy Himanshu who was participating in the idol immersion, along with his friends, drowned. Locals revealed that the child’s foot slipped while he was playing near the water body.

Along with Himanshu, a friend of his drowned as well, and divers managed to recover the two bodies. In Palla village in Outer Delhi, a group of youths who had gone to participate in the idol immersions entered the river and were soon swept away into the water.

Out of the group, six were swept away and two of them swam to safety. The fire department who received a call around 5 pm swung into action. Divers successfully managed to recover three bodies, all in the age group of 12-17. Rescue operations are still underway to hunt for the fourth missing body.

Meanwhile, another body of a girl was recovered from Sonia Vihar area later in the evening.

Police say that all the bodies are yet to be identified. Rescue operations are underway at all major Durga Puja immersion sites in order to check if any more people are feared dead.