Jorhat/ Guwahati: Overnight search and rescue operations established contacts with 84 persons, who were travelling on the ill-fated boat that capsized in the Brahmaputra river in Assam, but two persons are still missing, officials said on Thursday morning.
One person was confirmed dead after a private boat heading to Majuli sank on Wednesday evening, following a head-on collision with a government-owned ferry near Nimati Ghat in Jorhat district.
The wreckage of the boat, which was found overturned around 1.5 km downstream of the mighty Brahmaputra, was cut open from the base by NDRF and SDRF divers, but no body was found inside it, Jorhat Deputy Commissioner Ashok Barman said.
"So far, one person is confirmed dead and two persons are missing. We could do contact tracing of 84 persons to different villages in Jorhat and Majuli districts. This adds up to the presence of 87 passengers on the boat," he added.
Jorhat's Superintendent of Police Ankur Jain said the two missing persons hail from Jorhat and Lakhimpur districts, and search operation is still going on with divers from the NDRF and SDRF with backup of the Army.
"The divers on Thursday morning also went inside the boat, but could not find any body. Army divers will also search the area. Air Force will carry out an aerial survey downstream to locate the missing persons," he said.
Jorhat Medical College and Hospital's Superintendent Purnima Barua said 11 passengers were admitted to the hospital, of whom one died and three were released.
"Seven persons are still undergoing treatment, but none of them are critical. More than physical injury, they are in mental trauma," she said.
Meanehile, protests broke out in Assam's Majuli on Thursday over the boat capsize in Brahmaputra, prompting the police to baton-charge the people, including students, officials said.
Power Minister Bimal Borah, who reached Majuli ahead of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's visit, was gheraoed by the agitating students, forcing him to sit on the road at Garmur Chariali for almost half-an-hour as he tried to talk to the protesters.
Trying to pacify the agitators, Borah said, "I have come here to listen to your grievances. You please talk among yourselves and then let a delegation meet us with your demands."
Though he tried to end the protests, he left when agitators did not relent and demanded the chief minister to come and talk to them.
Borah silently walked away as the police escorted him out of the crowd.
"No tickets are given on the boats and no life jackets are there. We have been hearing about a bridge since our birth, but not a single pillar is seen so far," a protesting
student said.
Furthermore, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday ordered filing of a criminal case over capsizing of a boat plying to Majuli, that claimed one life, while two persons are still missing.
Sarma banned all single-engine private boats from plying to Majuli with immediate effect and announced that the construction of a proposed bridge between Jorhat and Majuli will start from November 2021 and will be completed in four years.
After visiting the accident site with senior officials, the Chief Minister told reporters that initial probe indicated "mismanagement" to be the prime reason for the accident, which occurred on Wednesday evening.
"I have asked the Jorhat Police to file a criminal case. By today evening, we will announce a high-level probe to find out the reasons behind the accident," he said.
The chief minister also said that there are 10 private machine boats with single engines that operate between Nimati Ghat in Jorhat on the southern bank of Brahmaputra to Majuli, the world's largest river island.