Kolkata: Two cousins, Rudra Das (14) and Debarghya Das (12), drowned in a pond in Barasat after getting into the water to bathe following a game on Saturday afternoon. The tragic incident took place in the Ramkrishnapalli area, leaving their family members and neighbours devastated. The deceased were residents of Vidyasagar Palli in Barasat.According to police, the two boys had left home on Saturday morning to play. After finishing their game near a pond in Ramkrishnapalli, they entered the water to take a bath.Locals said the pond had recently been renovated, increasing its depth. Neither of the boys knew how to swim. As no one else was present in the pond at the time, the cousins reportedly slipped into deeper water and drowned.“A person living in a house opposite the pond spotted the boys drowning and raised an alarm, drawing the attention of local residents. Police, fire brigade personnel and locals launched a search operation. The father of one of the boys, Gopal Das, also entered the water in a desperate attempt to find them,” a local trader said.After a prolonged search, the two boys were rescued and rushed to Barasat Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared them dead. Police sent the bodies for post-mortem.Locals expressed anger over the alleged delay in the arrival of the disaster management team.The tragedy has cast a pall of grief over the neighbourhood during the festive season. Rudra’s father, Gobinda Das, broke down in tears, saying, “Everything is over for us.”
