Four people were reported to have drowned during Durga idol immersion at two river ghats in Uttar Pradesh’s Gonda district on Tuesday evening, but the final death toll remained unclear as rescue teams continued searching for three victims, according to a report by Times of India – Lucknow.
The incidents took place at Ghoghra Ghat on the Tedhi river in the Tarabganj police station area and at Bhaisahwa Ghat under Dhanepur police station limits. At Ghoghra Ghat, three teenagers were reported to have drowned during the immersion of a Durga idol. Local residents and divers recovered the body of 18-year-old Sumit Prajapati, while Abhishek Tiwari, 15, and Ramvilas Prajapati, 17, remained missing when the report was published.
The second incident occurred at Bhaisahwa Ghat at around 7pm. Tularam Shukla, 50, a resident of Shivbaksh Purwa in Bihuri village, reportedly slipped and fell into the river while participating in the immersion of his village’s Durga idol. Police and local divers were searching for him.
The report attributed the incident details to district officials and said police teams from Tarabganj and Dhanepur had reached the two locations. Local residents, divers and rescue personnel were involved in the search operations, while a Flood Provincial Armed Constabulary team was dispatched from the district headquarters.
District disaster management expert Rajesh Srivastava confirmed that three people had drowned in the Tarabganj area, with one body recovered and two people still missing. He also confirmed a separate drowning incident in Dhanepur, where efforts were underway to locate the victim.
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath took cognisance of the incidents and expressed condolences to the affected families, according to the report. He directed officials to reach the locations, accelerate relief and rescue work, intensify searches with assistance from the State Disaster Response Force and meet the families to ensure that assistance was provided.
The reported incidents highlight the operational risks associated with large religious gatherings at river ghats, where immersion activities can bring participants close to deep or unstable water. The available report, however, does not establish whether all three missing people were confirmed dead. Police and disaster-response teams were continuing search operations at both ghats, and the final status of the victims remained pending confirmation.
