Doc from Malaysia swept away in river at Badrinath, dad rescued

Dehradun: A 40-year-old doctor from Malaysia and his 67-year-old father were swept away in the strong currents of Alaknanda river near Badrinath temple on Tuesday morning. While the father was rescued 200m away from the spot, his son is still missing.
Police said the missing man, Balraj Sethi, was born and brought up in Malaysia, where he used to run a nursing home.
Sub-inspector (SI) Navneet Bhandari of Badrinath police station, who was involved in the search operation, said, "Balraj had landed in India on Sept 14 with his parents, son and cousin for Char Dham Yatra."
"The family had embarked on a 10-day pilgrimage, and after visiting three shrines, they arrived at Badrinath on Tuesday morning to complete their journey. Balraj's father, Suresh Chandra, had gone near the river to perform ‘tarpan', a ritual during which water is offered to ancestors. When he ventured deep into the river, he was swept away by strong currents. In an attempt to save his father, Sethi jumped into the river but was also carried away. Labourers working nearby managed to rescue Chandra," said Bhandari.
Two rescue teams comprising around 60 personnel from the Army, ITBP, NDRF, SDRF and police have been formed to search for the missing son. "Efforts to search for Balraj continued till Tuesday evening, with teams using drones to assist in the operation. However, they were unable to locate him. Search is still on," the SI said.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a 37-year-old man, identified as Inderjeet Singh, lost his balance and fell into the Alaknanda river while taking a selfie on Mana bridge on Tuesday. He was rescued and was admitted to hospital.