Ashta (Madhya Pradesh): A ten-year-old boy drowned in the Popnus River near Harrajkhedi village during the immersion ceremony of Ganesh idols on Saturday.
According to reports, three children aged ten to 12 years, fell into the Papnash River when an idol of Ganesh was immersed. The village guard, on duty on the banks of the river Man Singh saved two children, but the third one identified as Bunty drowned.
Just before the incident, the guard showed away the three children from the river bank, but they did not listen to him. The villagers launched a search for the body of the boy. A team of SDERF was also pressed into service to search for the body.
The idols of Ganesh carried by trucks, trolleys, and small vehicles to the water bodies in Ashta were immersed on Saturday. Over 110 idols were installed in different pandals in the city during the Ganesh festival.
All idols were immersed in the Sarvadharma Kund where the district administration made elaborate security arrangements. Children were not allowed inside the Kund. Small idols were taken to the river on boats. The bigger ones were immersed with the help of crane.
Most of the idols were immersed in the Sarvadharma Kund and Kala Talab (lake). The district administration made elaborate arrangements for the immersion ceremony. Besides policemen, several divers were put on duty near the Kund.
12-YO boy drowns during Ganesha idol immersion
In another incident, a 12-year-old boy drowned during Ganpati immersion in Barkheda Kamaliya village of Jawad tehsil on Saturday. The accident occurred when villagers ignored designated immersion sites and chose an unauthorised pond for the religious ceremony.
SDM Jawad Preeti Sanghvi confirmed the incident, stating that administration had fixed specific locations for Ganpati immersion. However, a village group decided to use a different pond according to their preference. During the ceremony, a boy named Ishwar, son of Gheesalal Malviya, accidentally fell into the water and drowned.
Upon receiving information, a rescue team led by in-charge officer Pushpa Pawar immediately rushed to the spot. The team included platoon commander, Home Guard personnel and SDRF jawans equipped with special rescue vehicles Tata Yodha and Yodha 407, along with boats and rescue equipment.
The incident site was located approximately 20-25 kilometres from Jawad headquarters. Rescue operations began immediately with teams conducting extensive search operations in the pond. After considerable effort, the rescue team recovered the boy's body from the water.
