Kota: Four youths went missing after a boat carrying seven people overturned in the Kotri canal near Steel Bridge in Kota Tuesday evening. Three of them were rescued by residents, while a search operation was launched to trace the remaining four.The incident occurred during a Goddess Durga idol immersion ceremony. Education minister Madan Dilawar directed the district administration to launch an immediate search and rescue operation and reached the spot to supervise the efforts. District collector Piyush Samariya and city SP Tejaswini Gautam also reached the site.“The canal area is prohibited for immersion, and no idol ceremony is permitted in the canal in the area; even then, some people performed it,” Dilawar told the media.“Seven youths ventured for immersion of idols in a small unsafe boat that overturned in the middle of the canal, sweeping away four of the youths while 3 swam and were rescued by people,” Dilawar said, adding that State Disaster Response Force, NDRF and the entire machinery had been deployed for the search operation.At least 15-17 SDRF personnel, along with municipal corporation divers, civil defence teams, and local administration personnel, were involved in the search operation. Authorities also stopped the flow of water in the canal to assist the rescue efforts.Rakesh Vyas, deputy commissioner of Kota Municipal Corporation, said rescue teams were dispatched from KST as soon as the incident near Steel Bridge was reported. He added that the location was not a designated immersion spot where municipal teams had initially been deployed.The search operation was underway as teams continued efforts to trace the four missing youths.
