MUZAFFA RABAD: Indian authorities handed over the body of a teenager from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), who had drowned in the Neelum River, to Pakistani officials at a footbridge in Chilyana on Saturday.

Shahzad Manzoor, 18, drowned on July 3 while bathing in the river near Shaikh Bela village, officials said.

Despite efforts by locals, the body couldn`t be traced for 17 days until it was spotted along the left bank of the river in the Keran village of India-held Kashmir.

On July 20, images and videos circulated by AJK residents showed Indian army personnel and residents retrieving a body from the riverbank.

Authorities from both sides, through military channels, subsequently coordinated to establish the boy`s identity and facilitate the repatriation.