Srinagar, May 23: A series of heartbreaking drowning incidents were reported from different parts of Kashmir on Friday, leaving one person dead while efforts are on to trace two others feared drowned in separate incidents in Srinagar, Baramulla, and Ganderbal districts.
In Srinagar’s Noorbagh area, a search and rescue operation was launched in the Jhelum River to trace a missing teenager, identified as Iniyat Ahmad Ganie, son of Ghulam Muhammad of Palpora Noorbagh. Officials from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) began combing the river on Friday after the boy went missing on Thursday. Authorities believe he may have accidentally fallen into the river. Search efforts remain ongoing.
In north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, the SDRF successfully retrieved the body of a 12-year-old boy, Mohammad Afaq Khan, son of Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, who had drowned in Hapath Kha Nallah in Boniyar. His death has sent shockwaves through the local community.
Meanwhile, in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district, a forest guard identified as Shameem Ahmad Mir, aged about 45 and a resident of Batwina, drowned in the Sindh Nallah during a routine inspection at Compartment No. 01, Paribal. His body has not yet been recovered.
The Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Ganderbal confirmed the incident and stated, “During a routine inspection, one of our employees accidentally slipped and fell into the Nallah, resulting in his drowning. Teams from the SDRF, Forest Department, local police, and community members are on the scene and actively engaged in the rescue operation.”
