Drowning Cases on Rise in Odisha, 1772 Lives Lost in 3 Yrs

Bhubaneswar: During the past three years, a total of 1,772 persons died of drowning in different water bodies including rivers, sea and ponds in Odisha.

This information was provided by Minister of State for Home Tusharkanti Behera in the Odisha Assembly on Monday.

As per the official data shared by the Minister, in 2022 as many as 726 persons died of drowning. In 2021, the total number of deaths due to drowning was 576, while it was 469 in 2020.

This data hints that drowning deaths are on the rise in Odisha.

Drowning death cases increased by 22.81% in the year 2021 in comparison to the previous year. In 2022 this death toll further rose by 26.04% over 2021.

The Minister informed that since there has been an increasing trend of drowning in rivers and sea, all Fire Station employees have been asked to identify vulnerable places in and take safety measures as well as initiatives to generate awareness.