Two drown off Mumbai’s Arnala beach, one body yet to be recovered

The police said the two who drowned on Sunday were part of a group of 12, all residents of Jabalpur, who had come to Arnala beach.
Three of them – Heena Ansari (26), Farhad Ansari (24) and Ahfaz Ansari (17) — entered the sea and were swept away, the police added. While Farhad and Heena were rescued, Ahfaz couldn’t be. Heena was declared dead on arrival at a hospital. Farhad is undergoing treatment.

Palghar Collector Prashant Narnaware has issued orders banning tourists within 100 metres of any water body. “Like every year, tourists flock the spots and get swept away by the water. We have only banned people from entering the water, they can still go and enjoy the scenery,” he said.

Similar steps have been taken in Thane and Navi Mumbai as well, where tourists have been banned from stepping near waterfalls and other water bodies.

In Navi Mumbai, more than 20 tourists were taken into custody by the Khargar police on Sunday after they were spotted near a waterfall in Pandavkada area.

“The tourists have been booked and we are taking strict action against them. Despite warning, notices and locals telling them not to go close to the waterfall, people go there and get stuck, eventually making us take the help of the fire brigade and super specialised task forces like the NDRF to rescue them. We have put up the warnings to avoid unforeseen circumstances,” an officer from Khargar police said.