NAUSHAHRO FEROZE: Three persons drowned in an old well at the shrine of Pir Shahenshah located in New Shahmir Dero village near Kandiaro town on Tuesday.

People present at the shrine said that a 16-year-old devotee, Uzair Rustam Korejo, along with his 18-year-old friend, Bashir Ahmed Kalhoro, visited the shrine and before leaving it proceeded to the well to fetch “sacred” water but fell into it. They said Bashir jumped into the well to rescue him but neither of them could come out.

Thereafter, a 30-year-old man, Siraj Kalhoro, also jumped into the well and met the same fate.

Some people managed to fish out the body of Siraj Kalhoro after an hour-long effort.

Later, around 200 people, including family members of the victims, took out a mourning procession and held a sit-in at the nearby Jam Noorullah section of the National Highway against the taluka administration and elected representatives of the area for not coming to the rescue of the victims despite getting distress calls.

They condemned the officials concerned for not making any efforts to call out divers or equipment to take out the bodies of the two teenaged youths from the well. The sit-in was in progress till last reports came in late in the evening.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2017