Bhubaneswar: A boy drowned and another went missing after being swept away by strong currents in Sidua river in Odisha’s Cuttack district Sunday, officials said.
The incident occurred near Basant Kundal village under the jurisdiction of Cuttack 42 Mouza police station.
“Two boys from Basant Kundal village had gone to the river, where both slipped into deep water and were swept away. Locals managed to rescue one of them, while the other remains missing,” Assistant Fire Officer Sanjeev Kumar Behera told PTI.
“We received a call at 12.04 pm about the drowning of two boys in Sidua river, a tributary of Kathajodi. Among two boys, Guru Prasad Nayak (11) was rescued in a serious condition by locals and shifted to a hospital,” Behera said, adding that he later declared dead.
The other boy, Sai Subham Nayak (12), is still missing and efforts are underway to trace him, he said.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed grief over the death of the boy and directed Cuttack district collector to release Rs 4 lakh ex gratia to his family from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
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