Agartala, June 17: In a heartbreaking incident, three teenage boys drowned on Tuesday afternoon while swimming in a pond located within the Agriculture Department premises at Matripalli in Badharghat, Agartala.
The victims—Boby Sukla Das, Subham Deb, and Suvajit Dey—were all between 15 and 16 years old and residents of the nearby locality. According to Bijoy Debnath, officer-in-charge of the AD Nagar police outpost, the boys had entered the pond unaware of its depth, leading to the tragic accident.
Local residents who noticed the drowning managed to pull one of the boys out and rushed him to TMC Hospital in an ambulance. However, he was declared dead on arrival.
Meanwhile, a team of firefighters and police personnel from AD Nagar police outpost promptly launched a search and rescue operation. Within 15 minutes, the remaining two bodies were recovered from the pond.
Debu Datta, a firefighter involved in the rescue mission, said, “The pond is quite deep. Although we responded quickly, all three boys had tragically succumbed by the time we retrieved them.”
The shocking incident has left the entire community in mourning. Grieving families and residents gathered at the site, calling for immediate safety measures around unguarded water bodies, particularly in areas frequented by children and teens.
Authorities have launched an investigation to determine the exact circumstances that led to the drowning. Meanwhile, the tragedy has reignited concerns over the lack of fencing, warning signs, and security around government property that poses potential risks to the public.
As the city reels from the loss, citizens are urging the administration to take swift preventive actions to ensure such a tragedy is never repeated.