The body of 26-year-old Kashmiri tourist guide who drowned while trying to save a non-local trekker in South Kashmir’s Pahalgam was retrieved from local Ladarwath Nallah in South Kashmir’s Pahalgam hill station on Thursday.
Divulging information about the incident, Tehsildar Pahalgam, Muhammad Hussain told news agency Kashmir News Trust that 9 tourists along with two local guides and a ponywala were crossing a make-shift foot-bridge at Tarsar Lake-11 kilometers away from hill station Pahalgam.
While crossing the bridge, one of the tourists identified as Dr Mahesh from Uttrakhand slipped and drowned in the lake. One of the guides, Shakeel Ahmed Thekeri son of Ghulab Thekeri, a resident of the Gagangeer Gund area of Central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district tried to save the Uttrakhand tourist and during the attempt, he himself drowned in the lake.
“After the incident, 11 persons including two guides were evacuated safely while an operation was launched to retrieve the bodies of the local guide and the non-local tourist,” Tehsildar said.
Some of the people evacuated include Rajesh Roshan (50), Prof. DVR, of Uttrakhand, Mukhan Kumaiya (prof. Pvt teacher of Bangalore), Dharam of Nanital Uttrakhand, Jai Ram of Bangalore, Sukumar Dhandapani of Tamil Nadu, Vikas Krishan, Kanchan of Uttrakhand (Prof. H/W), locals Muhammad Ishaq Lone of Pahalgam (tourists guide) and Parvaiz Ahmad (Ponny wala).
“Today, the body of the young tourist guide Shakeel Ahmed was retrieved from Ladarwath Nallah in Pahalgam while efforts are on to trace another body,” he said adding that an advisory had already been issued to trekkers not to trek on rainy days.
After the completion of medico-legal formalities, the body was handed over to the family for last rites.
One of the relatives of the slain tourist guide said that Shakeel Ahmed was in the tourist business for the past decade and he was an expert trekker