Residents blocked Paharpur Road for over half an hour on Sunday to protest police’s failure to rescue a local boy, who disappeared while swimming in the Hooghly on Saturday afternoon.

Sabbir Taj, a Class X student, is feared to have drowned near Bichali Ghat during high tide. He did not know how to swim. The six boys with him also could not swim.

The protesters claimed Calcutta police divers started looking for the 16-year-old hours after his disappearance. A team of BSF divers later joined the cops to look for the boy.