Daijiworld Media Network- Mangalore (RS/SP)
 
Mangalore, May 25: Two teenagers lost their lives after drowning in the standing water of a quarry pit in Karkala in the afternoon of Sunday May 24 at Karambar area.
 
Rajesh Gatti (13) and Prameela Gatti (20) were  the victims of this tragedy. The two, who are cousins, had ventured there to wash clothes and have a bath. Rajesh was the son of Prameela's maternal aunt.  It is said, Rajesh slipped and fell into the water and Prameela, in an effort to rescue him, stepped into the water and drowned. The Fire Brigade personnel brought out the body of Rajesh while the local people recovered Prameela's body. Both the bodies were later shifted to Wenlock Hospital in the city.

Prameela is the second of the three children of the late Shivaram Gatti and Devaki Gatti, living in Karembar Ambedkar Nagar. Her family is poor and her father had died two years ago.  Rajesh Gatti was the last of the three children of Vasu Gatti and Vasanti Gatti from Ambedkar Nagar. Rajesh, who had passed his seventh standard examination, was to study in the eighth standard, if fate had not interfered with his plans.

As soon as the two drowned, eye witnesses raised an alarm. Even though the family members rushed to the spot immediately, they could not save the two, as they had been trapped in the sediment at the bottom of the pit. The crater itself is around 30 feet deep and water level is about 10 feet. Several families are dependent on the water found in this pit for various requirements. The crater was created due to the removal of stone blocks during the quarrying work.

Bajpe policemen have registered a case. Investigations are on.