It started as an ordinary Saturday afternoon. Three young schoolboys, hostel students in Deomali, had been given permission to step out for haircuts. Instead, they ended up at the Chatjo River. By sundown, one was already gone. By Monday, a second body had been pulled from the current. And somewhere downstream, 12-year-old Phosam Wangno is still missing.
A River That Should Have Been Left Alone
The Chatjo River in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tirap district had been swelling for days. Heavy monsoon rains have been battering the region without mercy, and the river was in full spate by the time the three boys arrived around noon on Saturday, July 12. They went in for a bath — the kind of impulsive, completely understandable thing boys that age do. The river didn’t care. All three were swept away almost instantly.
Two Families Now Have Answers. One Still Doesn’t.
The first body recovered was that of 12-year-old Paupwang Aana, found by local residents on the very day of the tragedy. The second, 13-year-old Ngowang Kakho, was pulled from the waters near Puberan village on Monday, confirmed by Tirap District Disaster Management Officer Emily Tingkhatra. It is heartbreaking news — but it is at least closure of a kind. For the family of Phosam Wangno, the wait continues. Every hour that passes makes the outcome harder to hope for.
A Massive Rescue Operation, Still Running
The search, which kicked off on Sunday, has thrown everything at this river. Teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), local police, and district administration were first on the ground. By Monday, the operation had scaled up significantly — the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indian Reserve Battalion, Assam Rifles, and community volunteers were all combing downstream stretches together. Strong currents have made every step dangerous and slow. The river isn’t cooperating. The search is set to resume on Tuesday.
A Warning Issued Too Late for Three Families
Following the tragedy, the Tirap district administration issued an advisory, urging residents — especially children and young people — to stay away from rivers and water bodies in light of the India Meteorological Department’s warnings of continued heavy rainfall. It is the right call. But for three families in Deomali, that warning came a few days too late.
Three children set out from their hostel for something as mundane as a haircut. The fact that two of them will never come back — and that an entire rescue machinery is still out on that river searching for the third — is a grief that no district advisory can address. The monsoon in the Northeast does not negotiate. This, tragically, is not the last story like this we will tell this season.
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