Sundargarh: In a heartbreaking incident, two brothers drowned while taking bath in a village pond in Odisha’s Sundargarh district on Friday.

The deceased have been identified as Chitta Makar (40) and Debasish Makar (20), residents of Jhupurunga village under Gopalpur panchayat within Hemgiri police limits.

According to reports, the tragedy struck when the younger brother, Debasish, slipped into deep water while bathing in the pond on Friday afternoon. Seeing him struggle, Chitta, who was standing on the bank, immediately jumped in to rescue him but tragically drowned as well.

The villagers launched a search but failed to trace the duo. Later, fire services personnel carried out an operation and recovered Debasish’s body late Friday night, while Chitta’s body was recovered early Saturday morning.

Police have registered an unnatural death case at Hemgiri police station. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination.