KHAMMAM/ ELURU: Five BTech students were swept away in the Godavari river near the Kolligudem sand ramp on the outskirts of Purushothapatnam village in Yetapaka mandal in Andhra Pradesh on Friday.
According to information, five second year engineering students of SRM College in Amaravati -- Harsha, Deepak, Navadeep, Satish and Teja -- came to Bhadrachalam to celebrate Ugadi with their friend Srikar. Srikar’s friend Abhiram, a student of a Sanskrit college, also joined the group.
While taking photos in the river, all the seven youngsters were suddenly caught in a strong current and swept away. Two of them, Harsha and Deepak managed to swim back to safety, and alerted authorities.
The missing students have been identified as Abhiram, Srikar, Teja, Satish and Navadeep. Upon receiving information, police rushed to the spot and launched a search operation with the help of expert swimmers. The bodies of three students were retrieved from the river.