Dehradun, May 16 (PTI): One person drowned and another went missing after being swept away by the strong currents of the Ganga river in two separate incidents in and around Rishikesh on Saturday, police said.

According to the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Sonu Verma (30), a resident of Malviya Nagar in Delhi, reportedly lost balance and drowned while bathing at Sai Ghat in Rishikesh around 5.30 pm.

An SDRF team launched a search operation and later recovered the body from a depth of around 15 to 20 feet, the officials said.

Verma, a bus conductor, had come to Rishikesh from Palwal with a group of passengers and, after parking the bus, had gone to bathe in the river with the driver, they said.

In another incident near Shivpuri, Ved Prakash (24) from Rajasthan went missing when he slipped while bathing with five friends near Namami Gange Ghat.

Despite difficult river conditions and poor visibility, search operations are being carried out with the help of divers at all possible locations, officials said.

The missing man could not be traced till late evening, and the search operation will resume on Sunday, they added.

SDRF Commandant Arpan Yaduvanshi appealed to tourists to avoid bathing at unfamiliar or deep spots in view of the strong currents and rising water levels in the Ganga. PTI COR CDN APL APL

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