Sundaragada: Following an arduous 2-day search operation, body of 39-year-old Pragyashree Panda, who was swept away by strong currents of Ib river at Kanakund, was recovered from Sakobahal Ghat in Odisha’s Sundaragada district on Saturday afternoon.
According to sources, Prajnashree of Mahesdihi area in Sundargarh town had gone on an outing to the scenic rocky gorge and canyon on the Ib River near Ghoghar under Talsara police limits on Thursday afternoon along with her brother Raj, her sister Itishree Purohit, and Itishree’s husband. While at the site, Prajnashree stood on a slippery rock near the fast-flowing water to take photographs. At the same time, Itishree was on a video call showing the scenic location to another sister residing elsewhere. During the call, the sister on the other side suddenly screamed that Prajnashree had fallen. When Itishree turned around, she witnessed her sister being swept away by the intense currents and getting pulled into a deep, turbulent whirlpool.
Although local youths from nearby Ghoghar village rushed to the scene after hearing the family’s cries for help, none could enter the river due to the fierce currents and dangerous whirlpools. The fire services team was subsequently summoned to initiate the rescue operation.
The two days of continuous search by the Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) team from Jharsuguda, the fire services department, and the police yielded no success. On Saturday, local fishermen spotted the body trapped beneath bushes near the riverbank. On being informed, fire service personnel reached the spot and retrieved the body from the water. Following which, the Talsara Police completed necessary legal formalities and shifted the body to the District Headquarters Hospital for a postmortem.
Prajnashree was well known locally as a social worker. News of the recovery of her body has sent shockwaves across the region, leaving the local community in deep mourning.
