Recounting the climb down to recover the bodies of the youths who died at Jog falls on Sunday, Jyotiraj, popularly known as Koti Rama, an adventurist from Chitradurga, said: “The Sharavathi was cascading down with great force. The water was directly hitting my chest and I found it difficult to breathe as I climbed down using ropes. But, thinking about the agony of the family members of the deceased made me determined to find the bodies.” Three youths from Hubli who were enjoying the view of the falls died after falling down. While the bodies of Dadapeer and Moinuddin Makandar were recovered on Wednesday, the body of Haji Makandar is yet to be found.
Clouds of mist
On Monday, when Jyotiraj looked down from the top of Raja curve, all that he could see was clouds of mist.
“On Monday, I climbed down the waterfalls, but the bodies could not be traced. On Tuesday, I tried to find the bodies by climbing the footsteps near the Raja curve of the waterfalls but did not succeed. As there was a possibility of the water release from Linganamakki reservoir being increased, the relatives of the deceased were worried that the bodies would be washed away,” he said.
‘Swam to the cliff’
“On Wednesday when the mist had cleared, I again looked down from the top of Raja curve. I saw two bodies near the cliff at the bottom of Raja curve. I went down to the bottom of the waterfalls, swam and reached the cliff. Using ropes and with the help of the students from my adventure club in Chitradurga, the local police, and fire and emergency services personnel, we lifted the bodies,” he said.
Mr. Jyotiraj has helped recover the bodies of two persons who had fallen down in similar circumstances on an earlier occasion.
