Bihar: 13 Children Dead After Boat Capsizes in Ganga, Rescue Operations Underway

At least 13 children, all under the age of 15, died after a boat carrying around 20 people capsized in the Ganga in Bihar’s Vaishali district on Tuesday evening, officials said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the family of each deceased, while Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary announced compensation of Rs 4 lakh for each bereaved family.

Vaishali District Magistrate Varsha Singh said the incident took place around 8.30 pm within the jurisdiction of Raghopur police station, approximately 70 km from the district headquarters.

The passengers, most of whom were from Rampur Shyamchand village, were travelling to a village across the river to attend a feast when the boat overturned.

“The boat was reportedly carrying 15 to 20 people, mostly children. The exact number is yet to be ascertained. So far, 13 bodies have been recovered, and all the victims were below 15 years of age,” Singh told reporters.

Rescue operations are underway, with local divers being assisted by the State Disaster Response Force. Singh said seven children had been rescued so far and were receiving treatment at NMCH hospital in Patna. Their condition was reported to be stable.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, the MLA from the Raghopur Assembly constituency, said in a video posted on X that he had spoken to the local administration and learnt that 14 bodies had been recovered.

Describing the boat tragedy as “deeply painful,” Prime Minister Modi announced an ex gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh to the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to those injured.

Yadav said he had urged the concerned officials to expedite rescue operations. He added that he would visit the area the following day to support those affected by the tragedy.  (with inputs from PTI)