Bangalore:
A four-day trip of a city-based college turned tragic on the first day itself as one of the students drowned to death in Rani pond at the Jog falls in Shimoga district on Friday. The Jog police have identified the deceased as Dixit Rao, 17, a II PU student of Government Boys College at 18th Cross Malleswaram and a resident of Yeshwantpur.
Police said that he fell accidentally into the pond after his leg slipped from a rock when he was trying to wash his face at around 9.30 am on Friday. Four of his friends who tried to rescue him could not succeed in their efforts as he drowned into the 75ft-deep pond. His body was fished out from the pond after a nine-hour operation in the evening and was shifted to the Jog government hospital for post-mortem examination.
Madappa, circle inspector of Sagar said that the victim and his four friends identified as Sudarshan, BT Madhusoodan, S Rakesh and Prashanth were at the spot when the incident happened. Fifty-three people, including 47 students, two teaching staff, two cooks and a driver had left Bangalore pm on Thursday night for the trip.
On reaching Jog, everyone got down to have breakfast. However, the five students disappeared from the scene without informing anyone and went down to the Rani falls. The lecturers came to know about the missing students and instructed others to call them. Unfortunately by then, Rao had already drowned and the students came and told their teachers about the incident.
The teachers immediately informed to the local police and rushed to the spot. The police have registered a case of unnatural death. The post-mortem will be conducted once his parents arrive from the city.
Meanwhile, the police quizzed the boy's friends Sudarshan, BT Madhusoodan, S Rakesh and Prashanth who were with him at the time of the incident. However, investigations revealed that there was no foul play and they had only tried to save their friend. They told the police that they were all preparing to wash their faces on the rock, when Rao slipped and fell into the pond. He cried for help and they threw a towel to save him, but their efforts went in vain, police said.
The lecturers who accompanied the students were shocked at the tragic incident. They told police that the students went down without informing them.
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