In another mishap, eight persons died when their boat sank in Kamala Balan river in Darbhanga district last evening. All bodies were recovered.
Bodies of 26 people who drowned after two boats capsized in the Bagmati river near Fultora ghat, in Bihar last evening, were recovered today even as a search was on to trace around 50 missing people. The passengers were returning to their villages after attending a fair on Vijaya Dashami, yesterday.
"National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are engaged in rescue operations since last evening and recovered 18 bodies, mostly of minors and women," said Indranand Mishra, superintendent of police of Khagaria district.
While five bodies were recovered last evening, 13 others were found this morning, Mishra said. Twenty-five persons swam to safety.
In another mishap, eight persons died when their boat sank in Kamala Balan river in Darbhanga district last evening. All bodies were recovered. The boat, carrying 17 people, overturned during immersion of an idol of Goddess Durga. Nine persons swam to safety.
Chief minister Nitish Kumar announced an ex-gratia of Rs1.50 lakh to the families of each of the deceased. Kumar asked the Khagaria district authorities to further intensify the rescue operations with the help of local fishermen.
Expressing shock at the tragedy, he directed the state authorities to deploy officials to prevent overcrowding of boats. Meanwhile, chief opposition RJD-LJP front has criticised the state government for its alleged failure to stop recurrence of boat mishaps.
"We demand that the state government pay an ex-gratia of Rs10 lakh to dependents of each of the deceased, besides a government job to an eligible member of the bereaved families," RJD spokesman Shakeel Ahmed Khan said. He also demanded that the state government come out with details of those who met a watery grave in boat mishaps during the past four years. "The government should also specify the actions taken for preventing overcrowding of boats," said Khan.
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