Manali:Â Twenty four engineering students from Hyderabad are missing after a river surge near Manali on Sunday. The incident took place after extra water was released from the Larji Dam around 6 PM.
Officials said, “At least 20 engineering students from Hyderabad feared washed away in Beas river near Mandi.”
The sightseeing trip to Himachal Pradesh turned tragic for the tourists when the students, including some girls who were taking photographs at the bank of the river, were swept away by gushing waters of Beas as discharge of water suddenly increased following its release from the reservoir of 126 MW Larji hydropower project.
According to information available with authorities in Shimla, 18 boys and six girls are feared to have drowned.
The discharge of water increased suddenly and caught everyone unawares as the project authorities released the water apparently without any warning.
Massive search operations have been launched to trace the missing students but there was no success due to darkness.
According to reports, the incident has sparked protests in the area with people blocking a local highway.
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(With PTI inputs)