13-year-old Assam boy drowns while saving beloved pup during devastating floods

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: Dog is man’s best friend and humans reciprocate this friendship. Proving this to be true, a heart-rending incident during the recent Upper Assam floods has now come to light, in which a 13-year-old boy sacrificed his life to save his dog. The boy, Ridip Panika from Bamunpukhuri Tea Estate in Nazira, Sivasagar district, lost his life while trying to save his pup, Barun, from drowning in floodwaters. The pup survived, serving as a lasting memory of Ridip for his parents.

Ridip was the son of Dipak and Bharati Panika. The boy was supposed to join a Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in the area when his life was snatched by the floods that devastated the Nazira area.

Recalling the sad incident of his son’s unfortunate death, Dipak Panika said, “The deluge rushed into our house all of a sudden and I told Ridip to proceed to his mama’s house, which is on comparatively higher ground, and that we will follow along with his documents. He proceeded to his mama’s house with his dog, a small pup named Barun. At the time of leaving, he told me that the dog was his ‘jaan’ and that he would take care of it. However, shortly after he arrived, floodwaters also inundated his mama’s house. He, along with his ‘mami’ and cousin, had to leave the house due to the rising floodwaters. They tried to reach higher ground, but, on the way, they met a strong wave of onrushing water, and his dog slipped out of his arms and fell into the water. He attempted to save the dog, but the strong wave washed him away. He drowned, but the dog was saved.”

Bharati Panika, Ridip’s mother, said, “Neighbours used to call my son Pratap. He had brought the dog just around 15 days ago, and he loved it dearly. We had sent Ridip forward to my brother’s place and stopped to gather his documents but we couldn’t get out as the flash floods had already reached us. We took shelter on a neighbour’s roof. We don’t know how we’ll survive without our son. The dog will keep on reminding us of Ridip.”

Ridip’s parents are now taking care of his dog Barun even though they are surviving hand-to-mouth themselves.

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