West Bengal: Youth drowns in Hooghly after puja

KOLKATA: An 18-year-old youth, residing at Satragachhi in Howrah, drowned in the Hooghly river at Ahiritola Ghat in north Kolkata on Monday afternoon. The victim, Samir Pandit, was taking a bath at the ghat when he drowned. Police said that a DMG divers’ team was pressed into action and the victim rescued around 2.50pm. He was declared dead at the Medical College Hospital.
The news of Pandit’s death was broken to his family soon after. Sources said Pandit had come to attend a puja in the area. “He had gone to take a bath after offering puja. He was slated to come back and join the others at the temple,” a local said.
The Disaster Management Group of Kolkata, which managed to recover the body within 75 minutes, has taken several steps to ensure they carry out quick operations in the Hooghly.