At least five people are feared drowned after a boat carrying 17 passengers capsized in the Ganga River at Umanath Ghat, under the Barh sub-division of Patna district in Bihar, officials reported. The incident occurred on Sunday morning during the Ganga Dussehra festival, which drew a large number of devotees to the river for a holy dip.
Eyewitness Bunty Kumari described the mishap, stating it happened around 9:15 AM when the boat lost balance and overturned in the middle of the river. “The boat overturned and sank in the middle of the Ganga river. However, 12 people were either rescued or swam to safety, while six are still missing,” Kumari said.
Upon receiving news of the incident, district administration officials and police personnel quickly arrived at the scene. Rescue operations, led by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), commenced immediately. Shubham Kumar, the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) of Barh, confirmed the ongoing efforts to locate the missing individuals. “We soon reached the incident spot and started rescue operations to trace the missing persons. The search operation is on to trace the six missing persons,” Kumar stated.
Kumar further added that the SDRF personnel are actively engaged in the rescue efforts and are working to identify the missing individuals. “We are also engaging SDRF personnel and are trying to ascertain the identity of the missing persons. The rescue operation is ongoing to trace the whereabouts of the missing occupants of the ill-fated boat,” he said.
Sources By Agencies