Three drown as picnic ends in tragedy

A picnic at Khandala ended in a watery grave for three youngsters, including two students and a software professional, on Sunday afternoon. 

The deceased Rohan Rajan Rajadhakshya, 20, a resident of Hindu Colony, Dadar (east), and Wadala (east) resident Abhay Bhagwan Ubale, 20, were both students.
Software engineer Padala Venkata Raghav Reddy, 21, resident of Hinjewadi, Pune, dove into a stream to save the other two youngsters, but ended up losing his life as well.
According to Lonavala police, Rajadhakshya and Ubale had hired a car to go to Pune and were on their way back home when the incident took place. While crossing Khandala, the duo decided to halt near the stream which was nearly 10 feet deep and also had a waterfall.

The two initially decided to sit near the waterfall to enjoy the view. However, Rajadhakshya decided to go in the water but slipped and fell down. Seeing his friend drown, Ubale jumped into the water to save him. But he too couldn’t stay afloat.
Seeing them struggle, the driver of the car also tried to save the duo but was unsuccessful.

In the meantime, a group of about 15 software professionals from Hinjewadi had also come to the spot for a picnic. Seeing them in danger, Reddy dove into the water but he too couldn’t fight the strong current. Unfortunately, Reddy also drowned alongside Rajadhakshya and Ubale.

Their bodies were fished out by the local authorities late in the evening. According to the police, Reddy, who was originally from Andhra Pradesh, was completing his internship with a private IT company in Pune.

Two drown at Arnala: Two youngsters drowned at Arnala beach at Virar on Monday evening. Sanjay Sonwari, 22 and Shyam Bomani, 20, both residents of Virar (east), drowned around 4 pm. According to sources, the two had gone to the beach for a swim with their friends.