Two children drown in Narail river; one body recovered, Arya still missing

An eight-year-old girl, Arya, remains missing nearly 45 hours after she drowned in the Chitra River in Mahishkhola village under Panchgram union of Kalia upazila in Narail.

Arya, daughter of expatriate Abdullah Sheikh, went missing on Saturday (March 28) afternoon while bathing in the river. As of Monday (March 30), rescuers have not found her.

According to local sources, Arya and another child, Rafia, had gone missing from their home earlier that day. Family members began searching immediately. Around 4:00 pm, locals spotted a child’s body floating in the Chitra River near Jadavpur Kheyaghat, about one kilometre from their home.

Family members later recovered the body, which was identified as Rafia, daughter of Enayet Sheikh. Both children were students of Mahishkhola Government Primary School.

Md. Shamsuzzaman, station leader of Narail Fire Service, said a diving team from Khulna conducted a search operation starting at 7:00 am on Sunday. Despite day-long efforts, Arya could not be located.

The rescue operation was suspended around 3:30 pm with the family’s consent.

The incident has left the local community in deep mourning.