Mangalore, Oct.06: In a tragic incident, two boys drowned and three feared dead on Phalguni river at Paddodi in Bangrakullur Village in the outskrits of the City on Sunday.
At around 3.30pm, eight children, all residents of nearby Kodikal Katte, had been to the riverside to practice flip exercise as part of the tiger dance for the dasara celebrations.
As the boys Akshith, Rakshith, Kalandar, Prajwal C, Prajwal, Rajesh, Jagadeesh and Maarimuttu alias Muttu Raj were engrossed in practising, Akshith, who had mud on his body, got into the river to clean himself. He was caught in the current and he started screaming for help. Seeing him screaming for help, Rakshith, Kalandar, Prajwal and Rajesh rushed to help him, but unfortunately they too slipped and caught in the current. Though Maarimuttu rushed to help the boys, he could not sight anyone.
Personnel from fire and emergency department, police and local resident rushed to rescue the children. They recovered the bodies of Kalandar (17), who is a daily wage earner, and Prajwal (14), a class IX student of Ganapathi High School. Search for Akshith (14), class IX student of Milagres High School, Rakshith (16), class X student of Ganapathi High School and Rajesh (17), a daily wage worker.
Mangalore City South MLA JR Lobo and Mangalore City North MLA Mohiuddin Bava visited the spot.
