The beach at Puri may be one of the best in the country but think twice before stepping into the sea. Insidious undercurrents in this part of Bay of Bengal have claimed nearly 110 lives during the last eight years, enough to set alarm bells ringing. At least 60 of these casualties were tourists whose fun trip to the town ended on a tragic note for their families. Drowning statistics for the Puri beach are spine-chilling. While 38 people were gobbled up by the sea here in the five year period between 1995 and 1999, the number was 11 in 2000 and 15 the following year.