Deoria (UP), May 5 (PTI) A 21-year-old man drowned while bathing in a river along with his younger brother during a religious ritual in Uttar Pradesh's Deoria district on Monday, police said.

According to officials, the incident occurred at Chanuki Ghat in Bankata area, where a "kalash yatra" (ritual procession) was being held as part of a consecration ceremony for the Radha-Krishna temple in Baidauli village.

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As part of the ritual, Ajit Pandey (21) and his brother Shantanu Pandey (18), from Baidauli, had entered the river with other villagers to bathe and collect water. During the bath, the siblings ventured into deeper waters and began to drown, police said.

Villagers present at the ghat immediately jumped into the river to rescue them. Ajit was pulled out first, and Shantanu was retrieved a short while later, they added.

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The two were taken to the Primary Health Centre in Bhatparrani, where Shantanu was declared dead upon arrival, while Ajit was stated out of danger, a police spokesperson confirmed.

The body has been sent for post-mortem, and further proceedings are underway, the official added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)