Indian student drowns in New York waterfall

More than half a dozen Indian students and others have lost their lives in the US this year.

• Pramod Thomas
• 09 July, 2024

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By: Pramod Thomas

A 25-year-old Indian student enrolled at Trine University drowned at a waterfall in Albany, New York. The Indian consulate confirmed the incident, adding to a series of recent tragedies affecting the community.

Sai Surya Avinash Gadde died on July 7 at Barberville Falls, Albany, about 240 km north of New York.

“We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Sai Surya Avinash Gadde, a student at Trine University, who drowned on 7 July at Barbervilley Falls, Albany, NY,” the mission posted on X.

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to his grieving family and friends. @IndiainNewYork is extending all necessary assistance, including issuance of NOC for the transportation of Gadde’s mortal remains to India,” the Consulate General of India in New York posted on X late on Monday (8) night.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with his family during this difficult time,” it added.

Gadde’s LinkedIn profile showed he enrolled at Trine University in Indiana in the 2023-24 session. Reports said Gadde, originally from Telangana, had been spending the long weekend of July 4 in the waterfall area.

“One person died and another was rescued at Barberville Falls in Poestenkill on Sunday (7). The Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office says the person who died was a man not from the area,” a local news report said on Monday.

Multiple crews responded to the scene after two men swimming got into trouble. The man who was rescued was saved by a good Samaritan, News10.com quoted the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office as saying.

Gadde’s death marks the long list of increasing instances of Indians, especially students, dying an untimely death in the US.

Last month, a 32-year-old Dasari Gopikrishna, who came to the US less than a year ago, was fatally shot during a robbery at a convenience store in Pleasant Grove, Dallas in Texas.

More than half a dozen Indian students and others have lost their lives in the US in 2024.

Meanwhile, according to an announcement earlier last week, in a new initiative to support Indian students, the Consulate General of India in New York has developed a special platform for Indian students studying in the US.

(PTI)