PUNE, Oct. 2 -- Eight 16-year-old students of a Pune-based private college drowned at Diveagar beach in Raigad district on Thursday while on an educational trip, raising questions over safety arrangements during the excursion. The incident occurred around 5.30pm when some students ventured into a restricted portion of the sea and eight of them were swept away as they reportedly failed to gauge the depth and strength of sea currents. Their classmates and teachers raised an alarm, following which local residents and water sports operators launched a rescue operation. The eight students whose bodies were recovered were Tanmay Dattatray Vahile, Sumeet Bharat Ahire, Pranav Ramdas Bansode, Kaiwalya Satish Wasankar, Rajveer Yuvraj Vahile, Yash Kiran Wankhede, Soham Tukaram Bhandwalkar and Kaustubh Sandeep Dond - all students of the Alandi-based Winners Academy. The eight deceased were part of a 48-member group which was on an educational trip to Raigad Fort and Shrivardhan, according to a notice issued by Winners Academy on September 23. Officials from Raigad police said the group comprised 42 students from classes 11 and 12 (25 boys and 17 girls), and six teachers. Bhau Maruti Salunkhe, owner of Mahakali Water Sports which operates sporting activities on the beach, said he was alerted after some of the students started drowning and immediately initiated a rescue operation with his team. "When someone came running and told me that children were drowning, I immediately went into the sea with my team. We pulled the children out, but unfortunately, all of them had died," Salunkhe said. The stretch where the students drowned was approximately six feet from the coastline, and access to the area was restricted following monsoon rains. "Even devotees were not allowed to enter this area during Ganesh visarjan," Salunkhe said. Police and administrative officials reached the spot after being alerted about the incident and took the bodies of the deceased to the primary health centre at Borli Panchatan for post-mortem. Raju Sonawane, deputy superintendent of police, Raigad, said the deceased students did not know how to swim. The police are yet to record the statements of the deceased's parents and institute officials, he added. According to a notice issued by Winners Academy on September 23, the academy had obtained prior written consent for the trip from all concerned parents/guardians, and students had been instructed to follow disciplinary rules. But Alandi resident Sandeep Naikare accused Winners Academy of mishandling the incident and shirking on safety arrangements. "The institute had taken consent from parents before the trip. If the same level of diligence had been followed during the trip, perhaps these children would still be alive," he said. As local residents gathered in large numbers outside the institute on Thursday, Alandi resident Nisar Sayyed said villagers were angry over the lack of communication from the institute. "No official information was provided to anyone. We learnt about the incident through media reports and then informed the police," he said. BJP leader and minister Girish Mahajan said educational institutions must take responsibility for students during outdoor excursions. Calls and messages from HT to Winners Academy seeking comment did not elicit any response....