At least seven persons have still remained missing after their boat turned turtle in the Brahmaputra river near Nimatighat in upper Assam’s Jorhat district on Wednesday afternoon, police said.
As per government records, 63 persons have been rescued so far of which one person died in hospital.
28-year-old Parimita Das from Guwahati, who worked as an associate professor at a college in Majuli, succumbed to her injuries on Wednesday evening in Jorhat Medical College Hospital (JMCH).
Sources said eight rescued persons are undergoing treatment in JMCH.
According to police, a total of were 67 persons were traveling by the boat when the mishap occurred on Wednesday afternoon.
However, locals claimed that there were around 100 persons in the boat.
As no ticket was issued to the passengers of the boat, the administration has failed to ascertain the exact number of passengers traveling in the vessel.
The mishap occurred when the Majuli Kamalabari bound private boat ‘Ma Kamala’, collided with the government-owned ferry ‘Tripkai’, which was coming from Majuli.
Meanwhile, the administration has decided to engage Indian Army personnel in the search operations.
“The Army will join the rescue operations on Thursday with some advanced machines,” Jorhat Deputy Commissioner Ashok Barman said.
Assam power minister Bimal Bora, who reached Nematighat on Wednesday night, said, “There must be some lapses. Otherwise, this accident would not have taken place. These all will be looked into.”
The Assam Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) has opened helpline numbers to disseminate information related to the accident. These are 1070, 1079 and 1077.