Pune: Siblings Drown in Junnar Pond; Father Abroad, Family Devastated
Junnar, 24th November 2025: A tragic incident was reported from Islampura village in Junnar, where a brother and sister drowned in a pond on Saturday. The deaths sparked an extensive search operation by police and forest officials, who initially feared leopard involvement due to increased big-cat activity in the region.
The deceased were identified as Afan Afsar Inamdar (10) and his sister Rifat Afsar Inamdar (7), residents of Islampura, Khadakwasti in Junnar taluka. Police said the children’s mother alerted authorities around 4 pm on Saturday after noticing they were missing.
Given the rise in leopard sightings in Junnar, teams from the police and the forest department immediately launched a coordinated search, deploying drones to scan nearby fields and water bodies. During the search, officers located the children’s shoes and slippers near a pond close to the Idgah ground.
A detailed search of the pond confirmed that both children had drowned. They were rushed to the Junnar government hospital in the Junnar Rescue Team’s ambulance, where Medical Officer Dr. Zahid Hasan examined them and declared them dead.
According to locals, the children’s father has been working in Dubai for the past five months, while they were under the care of their mother and grandmother. The incident has left the village in deep sorrow.
