Patna: A major accident took place on Friday morning at the Umanath Ganga Ghat in the Barh subdivision of Patna district, where three women were swept into deep waters while taking a ritual bath in the Ganges. Two women were rescued, while a teenage girl remained missing till the filing of this report.
According to local officials and residents, around 15 devotees had travelled by auto-rickshaw from Kunha village under the Rahui police station area of Nalanda district to perform a purification ritual at the ghat situated along the northward-flowing stretch of the Ganges.
During the ritual bath, three women reportedly slipped into a deeper section of the river and began drowning, triggering panic among devotees and family members present at the site.
Local Boy Rescues Two Women
Amid the chaos, a 13-year-old boy identified as Sunny Kumar jumped into the river and managed to rescue two women from the strong current.
Sunny, who sells flowers and garlands at the ghat, reportedly risked his life to pull the women to safety. However, he could not rescue Kajal Kumari, a teenage girl who went missing in the river.
Local residents said Sunny has previously rescued several people from drowning incidents at the ghat.
Questions Raised Over Ghat Safety
The incident has intensified concerns over the condition of the recently constructed ghat infrastructure. Locals alleged that the steps built at a cost of more than Rs 50 lakh had deteriorated within a short period and parts of the structure had already collapsed.
Residents claimed that despite visible damage and subsidence at the site, adequate barricading and warning measures had not been put in place before the incident.
The accident occurred a day after another tragedy was reported at the same ghat, further fuelling public anger over alleged administrative negligence and poor maintenance.
Search Operation Underway
Following the incident, officials including Barh police station SHO Brij Kishore Singh, CDPO Ramkrishna, Circle Officer Narendra Kumar Singh and SDO Garima Lohia reached the spot.
A search operation for the missing teenager was launched with the help of local divers. Authorities also installed temporary bamboo barricades at sections of the ghat to prevent devotees from entering deeper waters.
Officials said further action would be taken after the completion of the rescue and assessment operations.
