Patna: Two 14-year-old boys were feared drowned while bathing in Burhi Gandak river at Bhurkurwa Ghat in Muzaffarpur district on Monday morning. A search operation by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), assisted by local divers, was underway, but the teenagers remained untraced till the time of filing this report.The missing boys were identified as Annu Kumar alias Kallu (14), son of Dinesh Bhagat, and Ujjwal Kumar (14), son of Manohar Bhagat, both residents of Bathna village under ward no. 10.According to locals, the two friends arrived at Bhurkurwa Ghat on a motorcycle around 10am to take a bath. They had reportedly left their homes without informing their family members.The teenagers entered the river but apparently could not gauge its depth. They slipped while bathing and were swept into a deeper section of the river.Local residents who noticed them drowning attempted to rescue them, but the strong current and depth of the river made the effort difficult. The two boys soon disappeared from sight.Police and administrative officials reached the spot after being informed and launched a search operation. Motipur SHO Sanjeev Kumar arrived with a police team and coordinated the rescue efforts.An SDRF team was subsequently deployed with a motorboat and search equipment. Local divers were also assisting the rescue personnel.SHO Sanjeev Kumar said, “The police team immediately arrived at the spot after receiving information about the incident. The SDRF team was conducting a search operation in the river, while local divers were also being used to cover the area.”
