Locals gather after a boat carrying children capsized, in Muzaffarpur. At least 10 children went missing, according to officials.
Credit: PTI Photo
Search is still under way by rescue teams to trace 10 children, almost eight hours after they went missing following a boat capsize in Bagmati river in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district on Thursday, officials said.
The boat was carrying 30 children, and 20 of them have so far been rescued, they said.
The incident took place near Madhupur Patti ghat along the Bagmati river when the children were going to school, the officials said.
Talking to reporters in Muzaffarpur, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said: “Rescue operation is underway… I have asked the district magistrate concerned to look into the matter with urgency. The state government will provide all assistance to the affected families.”
Kumar was here in the morning to review the progress of ongoing projects in the district.
Talking to PTI, District Magistrate Pranav Kumar said, “All efforts are being made to trace the 10 missing children. We have also deployed divers from neighbouring districts. Personnel of the National Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Response Force have been engaged in the rescue operation as well.”
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Vijay Kumar Sinha said the incident “exposed” the “tall claims” made by the chief minister on development.
“Where is the development that Kumar talks about when children of the area risk their lives daily to reach school by crossing the Bagmati river in overcrowded boats?” Sinha said.