Bhubaneswar, Sept 1: A Class 10 student drowned while bathing in the Kushabhadra River near Bhingarpur under the Balianta police station limits on Tuesday.
The deceased has been identified as Soumya Ranjan Jandi, a resident of Jitikarsuanlo village.
According to reports, Soumya had gone to the riverbank with a group of friends for a picnic. He reportedly drowned while taking a bath in the river.
After around 30 minutes, local residents rescued Soumya from the river and rushed him to the Bhingarpur health centre. He was later shifted to Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar, where doctors declared him dead.
The incident comes amid a series of drowning deaths involving students and young people across Odisha in August.
On August 7, a 19-year-old youth, Rudra Narayan Swain, drowned in the Kuakhai River near Balianta on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. He and a friend had reportedly gone to the river with others and were swept away by a strong current while bathing. Swain’s body was later recovered, while a search was launched for his missing friend.
Earlier, on August 2, two students drowned while bathing in the Hansua River in Jagatsinghpur district. The victims were identified as 19-year-old Kanha Kandi and 14-year-old Butu Kandi. Their bodies were recovered following a two-day search operation by ODRAF and Fire Services personnel.
In another tragedy on August 22-23, two Plus-Two students, Bhavishya Patra and Anshuman Patra, drowned while bathing at Blue Lake, a water-filled abandoned stone quarry near Mitrapur in Balasore district. Their bodies were recovered after an extensive search operation involving Fire Services and ODRAF teams.
The repeated incidents have raised concerns over the safety of children and young people around rivers, lakes and other water bodies during the monsoon. Authorities have urged people to avoid entering deep or unfamiliar waters and exercise extreme caution in areas where strong currents and rising water levels pose a risk.
