Three youths drown in Tiruvallur temple pond during ritual
The deceased are identified as Hariharan (16), Venkataraman (17) and Veeraraghavan (24). They were studying Vedic studies at the mutt in Selaiyur and had gone to participate in the Brahmotsavam festival at the temple, police said.
CHENNAI: Three youths from a religious mutt in Selaiyur near Tambaram drowned in a temple pond in Tiruvallur on Tuesday morning while performing rituals. Police said that the incident occurred at the Veeraraghava Perumal Temple in Tiruvallur, 60 km from the city.
The deceased are identified as Hariharan (16), Venkataraman (17) and Veeraraghavan (24). They were studying Vedic studies at the mutt in Selaiyur and had gone to participate in the Brahmotsavam festival at the temple, police said.
Probe revealed that the youths were performing a religious ritual standing on the steps of the pond when they slipped and fell into the water. It is unclear if all three slipped at the same time or if one person slipped and others attempted to rescue him, police said.
Another youth who witnessed the incident alerted the others in the temple after which the trio was taken out of the pond. All three were declared dead at the hospital. Tiruvallur police sent the bodies to the Tiruvallur Government Medical College Hospital for autopsy.
In a similar incident in April 2023, five youngsters had drowned in a tank in Nanganallur during the Theerthavari ceremony, which involves volunteers and priests getting into water and performing rituals.
