Second schoolboy's body recovered from Arunachal river; search on for third student

A multi-agency search and rescue operation in Arunachal Pradesh's Tirap district recovered the body of a second schoolboy on Monday, July 13, while efforts continued to trace another student who went missing after the three entered the swollen Chatjo River for a bath.

The second victim was identified as 13-year-old Ngowang Kakho, whose body was recovered near Puberan village, Tirap District Disaster Management Officer (DDMO) Emily Tingkhatra said.

The first victim, 12-year-old Paupwang Aana, was found by local residents on the day of the incident on Saturday.

One student, Phosam Wangno (12), remains missing, and the search operation is scheduled to continue on Tuesday.

According to Deomali Assistant Commissioner Indira T. Riba, the three boys, all students of a school in Deomali, had gone to the Chatjo River to bathe around noon on Saturday after being permitted to leave their hostel for haircuts.

The river was in spate following heavy monsoon rainfall that has lashed the region over the past week.

The search operation, which began on Sunday with teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), police, district administration and local residents, was hampered by strong river currents.

On Monday, the operation was intensified with personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indian Reserve Battalion (IRBn), Assam Rifles, SDRF, police and community volunteers combing downstream stretches of the river.

Following the incident, the Tirap district administration issued an advisory urging residents, particularly children and youths, to stay away from rivers and other water bodies in view of the India Meteorological Department's warning of continued heavy rainfall in the district.

Authorities said the search operation for the missing student will resume on Tuesday.