Patna: A desperate attempt to save her blind husband turned fatal for a woman in Nalanda on Sunday, as both husband and wife drowned in a village canal in Sherpur under Asthawan police station area.The couple had gone to attend a family ritual when the tragedy struck. Hearing cries for help, villagers rushed to the spot and began searching the water. The woman’s body was fished out by the local villagers, while the man’s body was recovered later by SDRF team.The couple has been identified as Dhanakeshwar Manjhi (55) and his wife Baleshwari Devi (51).Their son Satveer said, “A ‘dashkarm’ ceremony of his grandmother was being held with relatives in company. Dhanakeshwar had gone to the programme to get his head tonsured as part of the ritual. Since he could not see, Baleshwari accompanied him.”After the tonsure ceremony, Dhanakeshwar went to bathe in the village canal while Baleshwari sat nearby washing clothes.According to the family, Dhanakeshwar suddenly slipped while bathing and was pulled into deeper water. Seeing her husband struggling, Baleshwari jumped into the water in an attempt to save him. However, the water was deep and both were swept away.After considerable effort, villagers managed to pull Baleshwari’s body out of the canal. However, Dhanakeshwar could not be located.Police and other officials reached the spot after receiving information about the incident. Local divers were called in but they failed to locate the missing man.SDRF was subsequently summoned. After hours of search, SDRF team finally recovered Dhanakeshwar’s body from the water.The couple is survived by four sons and two daughters.Asthawan SHO Satyam Kumar said, “Both bodies were recovered from the canal and handed over to the family after the post-mortem.”
