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BELAGAVI: Seventeen-year-old 1st year ITI student of St. Xavier College at Khanapur town drown to death at the swimming pool of Rotary Corporation Sports Academy at Goaves here on Wednesday noon.

Madan Baburao Shetty of Khanapur is the deceased. Shetty’s family is originally from Udupi and settled at Khanapur since past two decades. Madan had arrived to Belagavi city along with six friends by train, bunking the classes, to enjoy the summer at the swimming pool here. It’s a swimming pool of Belagavi City Corporation (BCC) maintained by the Rotary Club.

All students enjoyed up to around 2.30pm from 1pm at the swimming pool. When the afternoon batch was finished and swimming pool became vacant, friends grasped that their another friend is missing. After searching surrounding areas, they brought this matter to the notice of the manager. When searched, the dead body was found 12 ft deep in the water.

According to friends of the deceased, they used to come often to this swimming pool, since the summer began, bunking the classes. They admitted that, before leaving Khanapur, deceased had taken alcohol. However, nobody in the other friends consumed alcohol, they said. After the body fished out from water, it was found that, deceased hadn’t drunk water. Police suspected the death likely because of fits.

Tilakawadi police held the manager and five lifeguards responsible for the incident and registered the negligence case against them. Accused are- manager Madhukar Bagewadi and lifeguards- Prasad Tendulkar, Vishal Vesane, Kallappa Patil, Imran Uchagaonkar and Vivek Pote, all from city.

Speaking to the TOI, Tilakawadi CPI A B Jadhav, said it’s a clear negligence of authorities. When authority collects Rs 10 entry fee, it has to take proper precautionary measures. They have to inquire who are swimmers and non-swimmers before giving entry into swimming pool. Besides, no life jackets kept at the pool premises for senior initial swimmers. There is no rope classifying deepness of the water at the pool. Besides all, lifeguards must be alert and keep watch on swimmers, he said.

Baburao Shetty, father of the deceased, who runs hotel at Khanapur said TOI that, Madan was his younger among his two sons. "I had ticked lot of hopes and expectations from him.I shocked when I heard my son has died at the swimming pool in Belagavi, which was unexpected to me", he said.