Cooch Behar: Three kids of a family drown while searching for snails in Dharla River

Cooch Behar: Three children from the same family tragically drowned while searching for snails in the Dharla River at Jor Patki Hasner Ghat in the Mathabhanga subdivision of Cooch Behar district on Thursday.

According to local sources, the victims were Akash Adhikari (11 years), Sushmita Adhikari (14 years) and Ankush Barman (12 years). Akash and Sushmita were siblings, while Ankush was the son of their maternal uncle. The siblings had visited their maternal uncle, Anukul Barman’s home and on Thursday, they went to the river with Ankush in search of snails. All three children drowned in the river.

Local residents quickly responded, rescuing the children from the river and rushing them to the Mathabhanga Sub-Divisional Hospital, where doctors declared them dead upon arrival. Upon being informed of the incident, officers from the Mathabhanga Police Station arrived at the scene. The bodies were recovered and arrangements are being made for post-mortem examination before being handed over to the family. Paresh Chandra Barman, the head of the local Gram Panchayat, expressed sorrow, stating: “We reached the spot with the locals after receiving the news. This is a very tragic incident. All three children belonged to the same family and their relatives are devastated by the loss.”