Several people feared drowned after two boats collide in Brahmaputra river; rescue ops underway

There were around 50 people in the boat which met with the accident, out of which 40 people have been rescued, said Jorhat Additional DC Damodar Barman. ANI

Several people are feared drowned after a ferry boat with 120 passengers capsized after colliding with another boat in Brahmaputra river in Assam’s Jorhat on Wednesday.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have launched rescue operation.

“Boats capsized at Majuli following a head-on collision. Over 100 people have been rescued so far. A total of 120 passengers were travelling in the boats. NDRF and SDRF are carrying out rescue operations,” GD Tripathi, CEO, ASDMA told EastMojo News.

The boat was travelling from Jorhat’s Neematighat to Majuli river island, when it collided with another headed in the opposite direction, reported The Times of India.

According to officials the accident occurred at about 4.30pm. As per the initial reports, one body has been recovered thus far.

Shortly after the incident, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed deep concern and directed the district administration of Majuli and Jorhat districts to undertake rescue mission expeditiously with the help of NDRF and SDRF teams.

I am pained at the tragic boat accident near Nimati Ghat, Jorhat.

Directed Majuli & Jorhat admin to undertake rescue mission expeditiously with help of @NDRFHQ & SDRF. Advising Min @BimalBorahbjp to immediately rush to the accident site. I’ll also visit Nimati Ghat tomorrow.

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) September 8, 2021

This is a developing story, more details are awaited.