Twenty-one bodies have been recovered after a boat capsized in Krishna river late on 12 November. The overloaded boat carrying 38 people capsized in the Krishna river near Vijayawada, resulting in the death of 21 tourists, the police said.
The director of the company that owned the boat was arrested and booked under section 304 A (Culpable homicide) of the IPC. Another accused working for the Tourist Department was also arrested and dismissed from service.
Vijayawada police commissioner D Gautam Sawang told the Times of India:
The boat neither had permission nor certification. The partners claim they entered into an agreement with the tourism department. But no fitness or worthiness certificate has been obtained. There are many aspects of negligence. They deliberately overloaded the boat and did not take safety measures like providing lifejackets.
The state government has also constituted an internal committee with Irrigation and Tourism officials to draw fresh guidelines for boating.
State Tourism Minister Bhuma Akhila Priya on Tuesday held a meeting with the boat operators' association at the Velagapudi Secretariat to discuss about safety measures that were in place, said The News Minute.
The incident occurred when the boat set off for Pavitra Sangamam at Ferry village near Vijayawada from Bhavani Island, the police said.
The boat was overloaded with 38 people and most of them were not provided life jackets. It capsized near a curve as it approached the Pavitra Sangamam point and most of the people were trapped underneath and were killed.Assistant Commissioner of Police
Most of the passengers were said to be members of the Ongole Walkers Club in Prakasam district while some were from Nellore who were on a visit to Vijayawada.
Two teams each comprising 30 NDRF personnel, a 45-member team of the State Disaster Rescue Force (SDRF) and 60 members of the Disaster Response and Fire Services Department were roped into the rescue operation.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister (Home) N China Rajappa, Opposition leader YS Jaganmohan Reddy and others expressed grief over the incident.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the families of the dead.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also tweeted his condolences through his PMO handle.
Two persons, who were rescued from the tragedy, complained of sickness and were shifted to a government general hospital in Vijayawada, the officials said.
Pradesh Congress Committee president N Raghuveera Reddy visited the accident spot and later the hospital.
One of the deceased was identified as Prabhakar Reddy, a former president of the BJP Prakasam district unit.
(This story has been updated to reflect the new death toll.)
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