LUCKNOW: The death toll rose to 11 in the Vrindavan boat mishap on Saturday as one more body was retrieved near Deoraha Baba Ghat in the River Yamuna.
Over 250 divers are trying to locate four persons still missing in a 14-km stretch of the river on the second day.
Notably, a boat carrying around 37 persons, all from Ludhiana district in Punjab, had capsized in the midstream of the River Yamuna along Keshi Ghat, leaving 10 people dead in Vrindavan on Friday afternoon. Over 22 people were rescued.
The army was called in to join the search and rescue operations along with local police, NDRF and SDRF teams.
Meanwhile, the police detained the accused boatman and owner, Pappu Nishad, around 9 pm on Friday, six hours after the accident. He had taken the devotees from Jugal Ghat and fled after the incident.
Officials said the rescuers had not been able to locate the missing persons yet due to the strong river currents. They fear the bodies may be trapped under silt and sand.
The accident happened at the site just 2 km away from the revered Banke Bihari temple. The witness said that the boat capsized in mid-stream, where the River is about 25 feet deep. The boat allegedly collided with a pontoon bridge, which was being repaired.
Among the deceased, two victims were immediate family members, and four others were their relatives, said the sources. Initial investigation revealed that the boat had a capacity of 40 passengers, and none of the devotees was provided with life jackets by the boatman.
The local sources claimed that the workers engaged in the repairing work of the pontoon bridge, and other boatmen rescued several people immediately after the incident.
Later, administrative teams reached the spot and launched a full-scale rescue operation.
Two videos related to the tragedy have surfaced. While the first one was apparently recorded 15 minutes before the accident, showing devotees chanting Radhe-Radhe onboard, the second video shows devotees struggling in the River after the boat capsized.
According to a local source, a survivor had said that the boat was about 50 feet away from the riverbank when the incident occurred. Strong winds caused the boatman to lose control.
Significantly, passengers had warned the boatman that a bridge was approaching and asked him to stop the boat, but he ignored their warnings.
The boat narrowly avoided collision twice, but on the third attempt, it hit and overturned.
The sources said that the devotees had reached Vrindavan on Friday morning as part of a four-day pilgrimage organised by the Shri Banke Bihari Club of Jagraon in Ludhiana.
Around 130 devotees travelled in two buses, including 90 from Jagraon and others from nearby cities.
A few of the deceased individuals were identified as Madhur Bahl, his mother Kavita Bahl and his relatives Charanjit, Pinky Bahl, Asha Rani, Anju Gulati and Rakesh Gulati.