Two Students Drown While Bathing in Pond Near Hostel in Odisha’s Balasore

Two students drowned while taking a bath in a pond near their hostel in Odisha’s Balasore district, police said on Friday.

The incident occurred on Thursday in Balasore town when the two students entered the pond located near their private hostel in the Mansing Bazar area. The victims were identified as Pratyush Kumar Mullick (17) and Smruti Ranjan Mahabhoi (18) , both residents of the Basudevpur area in neighbouring Bhadrakh district.

According to police, the students had been staying at the hostel while pursuing higher studies in Balasore.

After receiving information about the incident, personnel from the Fire and Emergency Services department rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation. The two students were pulled out of the pond and taken to the district headquarters hospital, where doctors declared them dead.

Balasore Town Police Station inspector-in-charge Bijaya Kumar Das said the bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination.

Police have registered a case of unnatural death and further investigation is underway to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the incident.