Two boys drown in private swimming pool

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: In a shocking incident, two minor boys drowned in a private swimming pool in JP Nagar 7th Phase on Monday afternoon. The children have been identified as Mohan and Jayanth, residents of Jaraganahalli, studying in class 7 at a nearby government school.

Both were 13 years old. According to sources, they had skipped school on Monday and decided to go swimming instead. The duo reached the pool around 3 pm and paid Rs 100 to get inside. The coach allowed them in but was not around when the boys ventured into the pool, sources added.

It is revealed that the boys got into one end of the pool that is only three feet deep but slowly inched towards the deeper end without realising the depth. Since they did not know how to swim, both drowned, the police said. The incident came to light when the coach returned to the pool and found their bodies floating. He alerted the owner of the building, identified as Shekhar, who in turn informed the police.

Konanakunte police reached the spot and had a tough time ascertaining the identity of the two boys. After four hours of door-to-door search, the police managed to trace the family members. Mohan’s father, Panduranga, a daily-wage labourer, filed a complaint against the pool management.

Police then arrested the coach and the owner of the building, charging them with causing death due to negligence, poor maintenance and not having taken safety precautions. The boys were not given instructions while entering the premises, nor was the instructor around when the incident occurred, a senior police officer said. Further probe is on.