In another heart-wrenching incident three friends-all youths aged between 12 to 15 years -died by drowning in a big lake owned by the Agriculture department in AD Nagar area of Agartala on Tuesday afternoon.

Police sources said that four young friends went swimming at the lake of Agriculture department located in the Matripalli area of Badharghat under AD Nagar police station on Tuesday afternoon . Among them, three youths identified as Bobby Shukladas, Shubhrajit Dey and Shubham Deb had gone down to in the deep water of the lake

Immediately, another local boy, identified as Palash Karmakar noticed the incident and he raised the alarm. Amid hue and cry, local villagers rushed to the spot and they informed police and firefighters of the incident.

The local villagers rescued the boy, Bobby Shukladas and shifted him to Tripura Medical College (TMC), but on the way to hospital he breathed his last.

Later, a team of Firefighters started a rescue operation in the deep water of the lake and within 30 minutes recovered Shubrajit Dey and Shubham Deb from deep water but both of them had died by then.

Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha through a social media message said that “I am deeply saddened by the tragic news of the drowning deaths of three individuals at once in the Matripalli area of Bhadhargat, Agartala. I pray to the Almighty to give strength to the bereaved families in this difficult time. At the same time, instructions have been given to the administration to take necessary measures.”

The death of the three youths has cast a shadow of grief and mourning all over the AD Nagar and Matri Pally area and the relatives of the deceased youths broke down in tears after loss of three youths.

Sources said that the agriculture department’s lake in the valley area between AD Nagar and Matri Pally is quite large and is currently overflowing with water in the wake of heavy Monsoon rain over the past one month. The youths who apparently did not know how to swim had made a fatal mistake by getting down into the lake and paid with their lives for this, sources added.

It may be recalled here that on June 7th last,  two minor girls drowned in a dig inside a kiln at Simna area of West Tripura during heavy Monsoon rain, when they were trying to catch fishes in a shallow pit dug in a field for kiln, deceased minor girls were identified as Laxmi (16) and Manabi (11), who were neighbour situated inside a tea garden area had gone out to catch fishes from rain water near their home during heavy Monsoon rain, but did not return home.

It may be recalled here that  on May 17, 2025 last two minor children of a family -- both brother and sister -- Prasenjit Debnath (11) and his younger sister Priyanka Debnath (7) drowned to death near a school at Purba Chandmari area in West Tripura.

Both had gone out to play near their home in the Purba Chandmari area on May 17 afternoon, but did not return home.

On May 18 afternoon, two workers engaged in the construction of a building near the school saw two dead bodies of the children in a shallow pit dug for sinking a water pump.