Two school boys drown in Kuakhai river in Bhubaneswar

Two high school students of the state capital drowned while taking bath in river Kuakhai today, police said.

Of the six students who had gone to the river, one of them stood on the river bank while five others slipped in the deep water while taking bath, locals said.

The local fishermen initially could rescue three boys.

Fire brigade personnel rescued two boys in a critical condition and rushed them to a hospital, where they were declared dead, Sukant Sethi, the fire officer, who monitored the rescue operation, said.

The students were identified as Jagamohan Sahu and Safiq Digal of Unit-9 Boys High School here.

They had gone to the river in the outskirts of the city after bunking classes, a teacher said.

In the middle of the search operation, Sethi said, the fire brigade team rescued a woman, who was being swept away by the river.

The woman was identified as Kanchan, a home guard working at Mancheswar police station.