Chitwan, February 28

A 19-year-old girl fell into the Narayani River while taking a selfie with her friend in Chitwan today.

Her friend, who dived in the river in bid to save her, has been missing, while the 19-year-old was rescued.

Smita Gyawali of Gaindakot, Nawalparasi, was hanging out on the banks of the Narayani River with her six companions when she thought of taking a selfie with her friend Namrata Sapkota of her village, with the river in the background.

Namrata slipped off a stone and fell into the river and Smita dived to save her, while their companions were on the other side of the river.

Shyam Thapa of Bhaktapur, who runs a meat shop in Narayangadh and was strolling near the river, rescued Namrata but failed to save Smita. “I could not see where she was,” he regretted.

Namrata and Smita, who were studying at Aroma College, were preparing for the board examination of Grade XII scheduled to begin on March 10.

“Last class was held on Friday and the students were staying at home to prepare for their final examinations,” said Bishnu Prasad Bhattarai, a teacher at Aroma College. “Both of them were intelligent students,” he added.

Narayangadh Area Police Office inspector Satya Narayan Thapa said search for Smita was on. “There is slim hope of recovering her alive. Nepal Police, APF, locals and her kin have been searching for her,” he said.

Area near the river has been developed into a park and hundreds of locals visit the park daily.

A large number of people take photographs sitting on big stones on the riverbanks and ignore our frequent appeals not to do so, said Thapa.