Darjeeling: Teacher, student drown while trying to save fellow student

DARJEELING: A pall of gloom descended in the Hill town with news of twin deaths. A teacher and a student both drowned while saving a fellow student on Saturday during a picnic.

Around 55 students of class 8 and class 12 along with 5 teachers of St. Robert’s Higher Secondary School, Darjeeling had gone for a picnic to 27th Mile (Bangey) area on the banks of Relly Khola in Kalimpong district.

At around 12.40 pm, one Umang Rai (13) went to the river for a bath and suddenly started to drown.

Seeing him drown, Nirmal Bhutia (50), a teacher, along with Priyanjal Chettri (13), a fellow student, dived into the river. They managed to save Rai, however, during the rescue both Bhutia and Chettri drowned.

While Bhutia was a resident of Gandhi Road, Darjeeling; Chettri was a resident of Gale Tea Estate.

Local residents later recovered the deceased and the police sent the bodies to Rambi Hospital.