8 Pune Students Of Private Coaching Centre On School Picnic Drown At Diveagar Beach In Maharashtra's Raigad

Raigad: In Maharashtra's Raigad, a major tragedy has been reported, where a school picnic turned fatal on the coastline on Thursday. According to reports, 8 students from a private coaching centre in Pune lost their lives after drowning at Diveagar beach in Raigad. The police have confirmed that all the bodies have been retrieved from the water and the students were declared dead.

The victims were part of a larger group that had travelled for a recreational outing and the tragedy has cast a pall over the Winners Academy community in Pune's Alandi to which the students belonged.

According to information shared by the police, the students had arrived in Diveagar from Alandi in Pune. They had gone to the beach as part of a picnic programme. The group entered the sea for swimming, during which they were swept away. The officials stated that they drowned while swimming in the sea, pointing to the strong currents at the beach.

Following the accident, a relief and rescue operation was launched at the scene by local police and administrative teams, who rushed to the spot and initiated search efforts along the shoreline. The operation, which continued for several hours, concluded with the recovery of all 8 bodies. The police confirmed that all the bodies have been recovered and have been taken for further formalities.

Tour Group Of 48 And How The Sea Turned Dangerous

As per reports, the group had arrived at Dighi Sagari in Diveagar for a tour. In total there were 48 people, comprising 25 boys, 17 girls and six teachers from Winners Academy for students of 11th and 12th standard. According to police, some of the students entered the sea for a swim and were unable to accurately judge the current and depth of the water, after which 8 of them were swept away.

A video since has been going viral on social media, capturing the aftermath on the sand, with bodies seen lying on the beach while groups of students made frantic attempts to resuscitate them. Police officials at the scene were also seen joining the desperate efforts to revive the students, as some of their friends broke down.

Rescue operations were launched immediately after the incident, with local residents, police and the administration joining the search. All eight bodies were subsequently recovered.

The victims have been identified as Tanmay Dattatray Vahile, Sumit Bharat Ahire, Pranav Ramdas Bansode, Kaivalya Satish Wasankar, Rajveer Yuvraj Vahile, Yash Kiran Wankhede, Soham Tukaram Bhandvalkar and Kaustubh Sandeep Daund.

Panic On Beach, Risky Rescue By Locals And Police Action

The news of the drowning triggered panic among villagers and tourists present at Diveagar. Among the first to respond was Bhau Maruti Salunkhe, who runs Bhau Maruti Salunkhe Mahakali Water Sports at Diveagar. Salunkhe and his crew did not wait and plunged into a search, putting their own lives at risk in their relentless attempt to locate and bring the students ashore.

Soon after being alerted, Assistant Police Inspector (ASI) Santosh Awati of Dighi Sagari Borli Panchatan Police Station arrived with his team. Working alongside villagers, the police team retrieved the bodies and moved them to the Primary Health Centre at Borli Panchatan, where medico-legal formalities were carried out.

A case has been registered in relation to the incident and further investigation is underway.