Chennai: Two teenage boys, aged 17 and 15 years, drowned in river Kosasthalaiyar near Periyapalayam in Tiruvallur district, 40 kilometres north of Chennai, on Monday afternoon. The victims — Harish, 17, of Thirukandalam village in Uthukottai taluk, and his cousin S Venkatesan, 15, from Nellore, Andhra Pradesh — were swept away by a strong current while they were swimming.The incident occurred around 1pm when the boys ventured into deeper waters. They were caught in the current and began calling for help. Oonlookers rushed to alert the villagers, who informed police.Periyapalayam police and fire and rescue personnel deployed a rubber boat and scoured the river, only to find the boys’ bodies trapped in bushes approximately one km downstream from the accident site.Venkatesan reportedly arrived in Uthukottai last week with his family to spend the summer vacation at his aunt’s house. The deceased boys’ family, including Harish’s mother Thilagavathi, 31, filed a missing persons complaint at Periyapalayam police station after the boys failed to return. Based on the investigation, police registered a case of accidental drowning. Further investigation is underway.