Goa: Four students on picnic drown in water-filled pit

A picnic turned tragic for four students of a boarding school who drowned in a water-filled stone quarry at Tuem village in North Goa after jumping into it, police said on Sunday.

Bodies of Danesh Sheikh (14) and Fredrick Fernandes (15), both from Mumbai, and Jonhas Mendes (14) and Prince Dias (15), who are from Goa, were recovered a day after the incident, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Gajanan Prabhudesai.

He said the boys had jumped into the quarry on Saturday during a school picnic, failing to gauge its depth.

"Out of the six students who had jumped into the pit, two were pulled out by their teachers immediately while the bodies of four others were traced on Sunday," the dy SP said.

The deceased were boarders of the Don Bosco school in Tuem village.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has condoled the incident.

"Deeply pained by the loss of lives of students by drowning at Tuem. We should ensure that our children are made aware of the dangers posed by such misadventures in order to prevent such tragedies. I have also directed the authorities to identify and cordon off such areas," he tweeted.