New Delhi, Jan 25 (IANS) A man is feared to have drowned in a canal of the Yamuna River during an idol immersion ceremony at the Delhi-Noida border, officials said on Sunday, adding that a large-scale rescue and search operation is currently underway.

The missing man has been identified as Vikas, who was participating in the immersion of Goddess Saraswati idols on Saturday, a day after Basant Panchami. During the ritual, he reportedly slipped and fell into the river.

Officials said he is believed to have drowned in the Yamuna Canal, which flows along the border between East Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

Delhi Boat Club in-charge Harish Kumar told IANS that the rescue operation was temporarily halted late at night and resumed early Sunday morning.

“After stopping the rescue operation at 12:30 a.m., it was resumed again at 6:30 a.m. Boat Club divers are continuously searching the Yamuna River. At present, no trace of the drowned boy has been found,” Kumar said.

Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), along with the police, fire services and the Uttar Pradesh State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), are present at the spot and actively engaged in the rescue operation.

East Delhi District Magistrate Amol Srivastava, speaking to reporters, said that the incident was reported on Saturday evening.

“Between 8 and 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, the Uttar Pradesh Police received information about a young man falling into the Yamuna Canal. Upon receiving the information, local police and administrative teams immediately arrived at the scene and started the rescue operation. Considering the seriousness of the situation, the NDRF has also been called to the site at around 8:30 p.m,” he said.

According to Vikas’s brother, the incident occurred while the immersion was being carried out on foot.

“We came here yesterday at 7 p.m. for idol immersion. We perform the immersion on foot. His foot slipped during the immersion. The search has been going on since yesterday. He has not been found yet,” he told IANS.

Eyewitnesses mentioned that when the man fell into the canal, people at the scene quickly raised the alarm and notified the police. However, they noted that due to the strong current in the Yamuna, he may have been swept away.

Administrative officials remain stationed at the site and are closely monitoring the rescue efforts in coordination with multiple agencies. Locals are also being questioned to gather all possible information related to the incident.

Meanwhile, the administration has appealed to the public to exercise extra caution near canals, rivers and other water bodies during idol immersion ceremonies and religious activities to avoid such tragedies.

–IANS

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