Man drowns during puja at Banganga

Local resident R B Purohit said the deceased had come along with his wife,brother and sister-in-law to perform a religious ceremony as part of which they had to step into the water to submerge the offerings.

“However,they ventured too deep without realising the depth of the water. Rescue personnel from the Fire Brigade and the Disaster Management Cell arrived with a dinghy,but Mahesh could not be rescued. It was only at about 6.15 pm that two local sweepers dived in and got the body out,” said Purohit.

“Mahesh’s body was fished out of the tank and taken to the Nair Hospital for postmortem. We are in the process of taking statements of the witnesses and other people but no case has been registered as of now,” said an officer from the Malabar Hill police station.

The tank,which is over 400 years old,rests in the heart of Walkeshwar between old houses and tall skyscrapers.

It is a popular religious spot in the state with devotees thronging in large numbers during the months of March and April when there is a presence of both police personnel and life guards. However,no life guards are present at the tank during the rest of the year.

The tank belongs to the Goud Saraswat Brahmin Walkeshwar Temple Trust,many members of which stay in the vicinity of the rectangular pool structure. In April this year,two women devotees were saved from drowning by two local residents.