Three of family drown in Rajkot check dam after Ganesh idol immersion

Three members of a family, including a father and his son, drowned in a check dam in Gujarat's Rajkot district after immersing a Lord Ganesh idol there, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place around 7 pm on Wednesday, police said.

The family, from Ranpur village, had gone to a check dam near Jhiyana village to immerse the Ganesh idol. After the immersion, two women and three men entered the water to take a bath, Airport Police Station inspector K P Taretiya said.

The five entered deeper waters and began struggling to stay afloat. While some people present at the spot managed to rescue the two women, the three men could not be saved, he said.

Fire department personnel later recovered the bodies of the three men from the check dam, the inspector said.

The deceased were identified as Dhirubhai Chauhan, 50, his son Nayan Chauhan, 23, and their relative Narendra Chauhan, 30.

Police registered an accidental death report in connection with the incident, police inspector said.  (with inputs from PTI)