Karnataka: Three students from private college down in KRS backwaters

Three men died Saturday evening at KRS backwaters in Karnataka’s Mysuru district while swimming, officials familiar with the developments said on Sunday.

Police identified the deceased as Bharat (20), a resident of Paduwarahalli, Praveen Moil (20) of Ramakrishna Nagar, and Varun (21), a resident of Hebbalu. The victims are second-year degree students of a private college in the city, officials said.

According to police officials, the deceased and two other students Manoj and Vignesh had gone for a picnic to Meenakshipura in the afternoon on three bikes. While swimming in the backwaters, Bharat, Praveen, and Varun got caught in the water’s strong currents and began drowning.

“The five of us went for a picnic and decided to swim. Bharath, Praveen and Varun got struck in the water’s convulsions and started drowning. We tried to rescue them, but we failed,” Vignesh told reporters on Sunday.

Police rushed to the spot and conducted an operation to fish out the bodies with the help of fire brigade personnel. Bharat’s body was recovered on Saturday, while the bodies of Praveen and Varun were found on Sunday.

‘’The youths were unable to estimate the undercurrent in deep waters. Hence, they were unable to come out. A case has been registered under section 174 Crpc (unnatural death report), and further investigations are underway,” Yelwala police station inspector B Kantharaju told HT.

Kantharaju emphasized that the KRS reservoir is expansive, with backwater shores spreading over several hundred acres.

“We have locked the gate to prevent entry of people into the area as it is difficult to guard all the areas.”

“Few villagers are taking soil in the backwaters and opening the gate. These students also gained entry through that gate. We have already informed the KRS gram panchayat to erect sign boards and prevent entry to people into the backwaters. We will deploy more policemen to guard backwaters,” he added.

On June 12, two engineering students drowned while swimming in the Meenakshipura area of KRS backwaters.

Police identified the victims as Chiranth of Hassan and Sunil from Bidar. Both were 22 and were studying at an engineering college in the city.

The duo had embarked on a trip to the backwaters with their other friends. While enjoying a swim, Chiranth and Sunil succumbed to exhaustion as they were unable to reach the shore, police said.