Kasaragod (Kerala) | Two youngsters drowned after being swept away by strong currents at a beach near here in this northern district, police said on Monday.

The deceased were identified as Appu T Abraham (20), a native of Changanassery, and Ankith (20), a resident of Chingavanam in Kottayam district.

According to police, the two had arrived in Kasaragod on Sunday along with a friend to visit an acquaintance.

Later in the evening, the group went to Pallikkara Beach near Bekal.

Police said that while two members of the group remained on the shore, Abraham and Ankith ventured into the sea and were swept away by strong currents.

Their friends immediately alerted lifeguards, who launched a search operation.

Personnel from the coastal police, coast guard, and the fisheries department later joined the search efforts.

Police said Abraham's body was recovered from the sea near the Chittari estuary, around six kilometres south of the spot where he went missing, on Monday afternoon.

Ankith's body was recovered later, further south near Kanhangad, they said.

The bodies were shifted to a government hospital for post-mortem examination and will be handed over to their relatives thereafter, police added.