Two students of the Maharaja’s College in the city drowned in the Periyar at Paniyeli Poru near Perumbavoor around 2.30 p.m. on Thursday. The deceased were identified as Jamal, a resident of Aroor, and Xavier Praveen of Palluruthy.
Both were B.A. Islamic History first year students at the college. They were part of a group of 18 first year students of the college who set out for a trip to the tourist spot of Paniyeli Poru.
The police said that the students left from the college in the morning and reached the spot around 11 a.m. The two students were reportedly standing at a rocky spot with shallow water to take a few photographs. They lost their footing and fell into the water.
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Police suspect that they may have hit their heads on rocks and lost their consciousness even as they were swept away by the flow. People present in the area tried to rescue the two in vain. Police and Fire and Rescue Services personnel arrived at the spot to retrieve their bodies. The bodies have been kept at the Perumbavoor Government Hospital and a post-mortem will be conducted on Friday.