Maharashtra: 8 Students Drown During School Picnic at Raigad’s Diveagar Beach

October 1, 2026

Raigad: Eight 16-year-old students drowned after venturing into the sea during a school picnic at Diveagar beach in Maharashtra’s Raigad district on Thursday, officials said.

A group of 48 people from Winners Academy for 11th and 12th in Pune’s Alandi area had visited Dighi-Sagari beach in Diveagar for an excursion. The group included 25 boys, 17 girls and six teachers.

During the visit, eight students entered the sea and were swept away after apparently misjudging the depth of the water and the strength of the current.

A local water sports team led by Bhau Salunkhe, owner of Bhau Maruti Salunkhe Mahakali Water Sports, immediately launched a rescue operation. The team managed to recover all eight students from the sea.

After receiving information about the incident, Assistant Police Inspector Santosh Awati of the Dighi Sagari Borli Panchatan Police Station reached the spot with a police team. With the help of local villagers, the bodies were taken into custody and sent to the Primary Health Centre at Borli Panchatan for post-mortem examinations.

The deceased students were identified as Tanmay Dattatray Vahile, Sumit Bharat Ahire, Pranav Ramdas Bansode, Kaivalya Satish Vasankar, Rajveer Yuvraj Vahile, Yash Kiran Wankhede, Soham Tukaram Bhandwalkar and Kaustubh Sandeep Daund.

Officials confirmed that all eight students were 16 years old and residents of Alandi in Pune. Further investigation and legal proceedings are underway.

The tragedy comes days after a separate incident in Jharkhand in which three children drowned in a village pond in Jamtara district.

Eight Students Swept Away at Diveagar Beach

The students were part of a school excursion when they entered the sea. Officials said they were swept away after apparently misjudging the water depth and current.

Local Water Sports Team Launches Rescue

A local water sports team responded immediately and recovered the bodies of all eight students. Police and villagers subsequently shifted the bodies to the local health centre for post-mortem examinations.

Investigation Underway

Police have begun further proceedings into the incident. The deceased students were all from Alandi in Pune and were 16 years old.