According to the official, the incident occurred when a group of eight youths on Sunday evening around 5 pm went to the Hingna area on the bank of the Zilpi Lake for a picnic.
After reaching the spot, they changed their plan and four of them ventured into the water even though they did not know swimming, the official said.
At first, they bathed on the edge of the lake. Later, Rishikesh went into deep water. Three others followed him. However, all four started drowning. So Vaibhav Vaidya rushed to save them. But he too drowned.
After police were alerted about the incident, a search operation was launched with the help of local divers.
The bodies of Rishikesh Parade (21), Nitin Kumbhare (21), Vaibhav Vaidya (20), Rahul Meshram (21) and Shantanu Armarkar (22), all residents of Wathoda (Pardi area), Nagpur.
All five bodies were fished out of the lake at around 10 pm, the official said, adding that they were sent to Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) for post-mortem.
A case of accidental death has been registered. (UNI)
