E Midnapore boat capsize case: 2 held

Kolkata: East Midnapore police on Thursday arrested the boatman and the owner of the motorboat that capsized in the Rupnarayan river at Mahishadal in East Midnapore on last Monday.

Both of them had been at large since the incident took place. The district police found that the motorboat used to ferry passengers illegally flouting the directives of the local administration. Stringent steps would be taken against the owner and the boat man, sources said.

Many persons went missing after a motorboat capsized in Rupnarayan river at Mahisadal in East Midnapore on Monday morning. The local administration on Thursday recovered the body of another person identified as Kartik Samanta (52). All the other passengers were rescued on the day of the incident.

It has been alleged that the boat capsized because of overloading. Following the incident, the State transport minister Suvendu Adhikari said the ferry service on the Rupnarayan river was illegal. The incident happened on Monday at around 9:30 am, when the motorboat, allegedly carrying passengers beyond its capacity from Mayachar to reach Amritberia in Mahisadal.

Local residents of Mahishadal alleged that the boat was overcrowded and therefore it lost balance and capsized. According to the preliminary investigation, the motorboat hit a sand-head in the middle of the river at the time of the incident. The local administration managed to rescue 38 passengers. Police said that there 39 passengers in the boat out of which Samanta had gone missing.