8 persons, including minor and siblings, drown in separate incidents in Assam

GUWAHATI/BISWANATH CHARIALI: The Bihu festivities in Assam started on a disastrous note with as many as eight persons losing their lives in separate drowning incidents in the state.

A minor child died falling into the Brahmaputra in Kharghuli area of Guwahati today.

The 12-year-old boy, identified as Nandan Saikia, accompanied another child of his age to bath in the river. Both slipped into the river and locals managed to rescue them and rush to the hospital. Nandan was pronounced brought dead at the hospital.

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The minors are stated to be from Kharghuli Beltol area of the capital city.

Although State Disaster Response Force was informed, they could not reach the spot on time.

Elsewhere at Sootea in Biswanath district, as many as five persons got drowned in two separate incidents today.

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Two persons drowned Ghiladhari river and bodies of three others were fished out of another water body in an adjoining locality of Sootea in Biswanath district.

According to sources, the two siblings, identified as Bhargab Mantri, 21, and his sister Sukanya Mantri, 22, of Sootea Purani Gaon drowned after they lunged into the Ghiladhari river to bath.

The bodies of the other three, identified as Mausham Oja, Abhijit Oja and Bikash Hazarika of Bhakot Gaon in Sootea, have also been reported to be recovered from the same river by the locals. However, details could not be gathered.

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Earlier in the day, two youths from Upper Assam’s Dibrugarh district were drowned while bathing cattle on the occasion of Goru Bihu (folk cattle festival). While one was found dead, the search for the other continued.

The two youths drowned in Buridehing river at Lezai Bahbari under Barbaruah Police Station in Dibrugarh district when they had gone to bath their cattle in the river.