Chhatarpur (Madhya Pradesh): An 18-year-old student died after drowning in a pond in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district on Saturday.

He went to a temple pond with his friend, to take bathe. While bathing near the steps of the pond, he slipped on algae and fell into deep water.

He has not been found since.

According to information, Prashant Ahirwar, drowned in the pond of Maa Dhadagiri Temple in Barigarh, under Jujhar Nagar police station limits, on Raksha Bandhan.

Prashant, a B.Sc. student, had returned home for the festival. Around 10 AM, he went to the temple pond with his friend, Dilip Singh, to bathe.

Neither of them knew how to swim. While bathing near the steps of the pond, Prashant slipped on algae and fell into deep water. He drowned and has not been found since.

Local police from Jujhar Nagar and Gaurihar reached the spot, and an SDRF team also came for the search.

They used a boat and nets but failed to locate the body. Later, a camera attached to a cable was lowered into the water, but heavy debris in the pond may have trapped the body, making recovery harder.

More than 20 hours have passed without success. The six-member SDRF team did not have trained scuba divers, so no one entered the deep water. Experts say that divers with oxygen cylinders and special goggles could have searched more effectively.

There are also fears that fish in the pond may have damaged the body. Locals and the victim’s family have criticised the authorities for not calling a scuba diving team in time, which could have helped them recover the body sooner.