Bhopal: Five more bodies were recovered on Friday from Bargi Dam in Jabalpur district where a cruise boat operated by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Department capsized the previous evening, taking the toll to nine, while search continued for six more tourists.
With survivors alleging negligence and safety lapses such as tourists not being given life jackets, the state government ordered a probe and also sacked three members of the boat’s crew.
Divers engaged in the rescue operation witnessed a heart-wrenching sight of the body of a woman still clutching her child.
While 28 tourists were rescued, teams from the Army, NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) and SDRF (State Disaster Response Force) were searching for the missing persons, officials said.
The state government ordered a probe and banned the operation of such vessels in the state.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, while offering condolences to the families of the victims, said the locals who risked their lives to save tourists will be honoured on Independence Day for their bravery.
The tourism department will investigate the accident caused by a seasonal cyclone to prevent such incidents in the future, the CM said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condoled the tragedy and announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the PM National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured.
Modi, in a post on ‘X’, said, “The loss of lives due to the capsizing of a boat in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, is extremely painful. I extend my condolences to those who have lost their loved ones in this tragic mishap. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured. The local administration is assisting those affected.”
The boat, which overturned after encountering a sudden storm on Thursday evening, was retrieved from the dam water, and no one was found inside, an official said.
Jabalpur City Superintendent of Police (CSP) Anjul Aayan Mishra said a search was on to trace the six persons still missing.
Yadav reached Jabalpur and visited the house of a person who was saved on Thursday night by rescuers.
Leader of Opposition in Assembly Umang Singhar also visited the site and alleged that the tragedy took place because of the negligence of the tourism department. “They are operating a cruise boat without the mandatory weather instruments,” the Opposition leader said.
Tourism Minister Dharmendra Bhav Singh Lodhi told PTI that a thorough probe will be conducted.
Deputy Inspector General (Jabalpur) Atul Singh said the Army, NDRF and SDRF were working together in the search and rescue operation.
He noted that employees of a local construction agency were the first responders and played a key role in evacuating those who escaped from the overturned boat.
According to eyewitnesses, strong winds made the water choppy, prompting many on board to raise an alarm and ask the crew to steer the boat back to the riverbank.
However, the crew was unable to hear these shouts, and the boat drifted and then overturned, they said, adding that some locals rescued a few passengers wearing life jackets with the help of a rope.
A survivor alleged negligence by the crew and described a last-minute scramble for life jackets.
Talking to PTI Videos, Delhi-resident Sangeeta Kori, who was among those rescued, claimed the vessel was carrying nearly 40 people — including children without tickets — and that the driver ignored warnings from locals to steer toward safety as the weather suddenly changed.
According to officials, the cruise boat had 29 passengers onboard and two crew members.
“None of the passengers had worn life jackets. They were just kept somewhere inside. When the water started entering the boat, they tried to distribute them, but it led to panic and scuffles. Within moments, the boat tipped over,” Kori recalled.
The tragedy could have been averted if the boat had been diverted in time, she said.
The tourism department on Friday terminated the services of cruise pilot Mahesh Patel, helper Chhotelal Gond and ticket counter in-charge Brijendra for alleged negligence, while Sunil Maravi, manager of Hotel Maikal Resort and Boat Club Bargi, was suspended. Regional manager Sanjay Malhotra was transferred to the headquarters in Bhopal and a departmental inquiry was initiated, officials said.
Army divers and disaster response teams on Saturday. May 2, expanded their search at Bargi Dam in Madhya Pradesh to locate a man and three children still missing after the cruise boat tragedy that claimed nine lives two days ago, officials said.
With 28 of the 41 identified passengers onboard the ill-fated cruise boat rescued safely, police are preparing to register an FIR in connection with the accident that occurred at the reservoir in Jabalpur district on Thursday evening, they said.
The search radius has been expanded to 5 km in the backwaters of the Bargi Dam, located downstream of the Narmada River, area sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP) Anjul Ayank Mishra told PTI.
Nine people drowned in the incident, while 28 were rescued, and efforts are ongoing to trace the missing persons, he said.
According to the police, more than 200 rescuers, including around 20 Army divers airlifted from Agra, began the search operation at 5 am on Saturday to trace Kamraj, an employee of the Ordnance Factory in Khamaria, his son Tamil (5), Vijay Soni (6) and Mayuram (5).
Mishra said that an inquest case has been registered and the post-mortem of nine deceased persons has been completed.
“Our priority is to search for the missing persons. We will soon register an FIR,” he said.
Investigators have said that CCTV footage near the boarding point showed 43 people heading towards the ill-fated boat, and the names of 41 persons, who boarded the vessel, have been ascertained so far.
Collector Raghvendra Singh confirmed that a search is underway for four missing persons.
The rescue operation, being carried out by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and local divers, was briefly affected around 9 am due to strong winds.
The state government on Friday ordered a probe into the incident and dismissed three crew members after survivors alleged negligence and safety lapses, including failure to provide life jackets.
The government also banned the operation of similar vessels in the state.
The boat, operated by the state tourism department, sank during a sudden storm around 6 pm on Thursday, and the wreckage was retrieved from the dam water on Friday, after the rescuers confirmed that there were no more bodies inside.
Eyewitnesses have said that strong winds made the water choppy, prompting passengers to raise an alarm and ask the crew to steer the vessel towards the riverbank.
A survivor alleged negligence by the crew and described a last-minute scramble for life jackets.
