Tamil Nadu: Three schoolgirls drown in Palar river while playing

CHENNAI: Three schoolgirls, including two sisters, drowned while playing near the Palar river in Kancheepuram on Thursday evening. While bodies of two washed ashore on Friday morning, the search for the third is on.

The deceased were identified as S Jeyasri, 16, and her younger sister S Subha Sri, 15, from Vinayagar Koil in Thumbavanam village in Kancheepuram district who were studying classes 10 and 9 respectively in a private school. Another girl, Poorni, 14, from Kannagi Nagar, had come to visit her uncle, Damodaran. 

"Mother of Jeyashri and Subha Sri is a government employee and had gone for work as usual. On at 4 pm on Thursday evening, Damodaran had taken the girls to the river to show them the gushing water near Valanthottam," said a police officer.

Due to the continuous rain, a reservoir in Vellore had opened its gates leading to the intense water flow in the river, said a police officer.

The three girls were pulled by the current when they stepped into the river to wash their legs. Police said that Damodaran attempted to rescue the girls but in vain. 

The Magaral police registered a case and the Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services (TNFRS) personnel started a search operation which ended without yielding any results. 

Meanwhile, the bodies of Jeyashri and Subha Sri washed ashore near Kuruvimalai. They were sent to the Kancheepuram Government Hospital for post-mortem. Search for Poorni is on.