Thekkady boat mishap: toll reaches 45

Thekkady, Oct 4 (PTI) The final toll in the boat tragedy
at Thekkady in India's southern state of Kerala reached 45
with the recovery of one more body from the lake on Sunday, as
authorities called off search operations saying all the
victims had been accounted for.

On the fifth day of search operations by naval divers and
others, the body of 20-year-old Abhilash from Hyderabad was
pulled out in the morning. The body of his sister Apurva (14)
was recovered on Saturday.

The double-decker boat of the Kerala Tourism Development
Corporation had 76 persons on board, including two crew
members, when it capsized in the Thekkady lake located in the
Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary after cruising five km on Wednesday

Among the victims were 19 women, 17 men and 9 children.

There were no complaints of any more missing persons,
officials said, adding that 31 persons survived the tragedy.

Almost all of the holidayers who set out for the cruise
were visitors from other states including Delhi, Tamil Nadu,
Karnataka, West Bengal and Punjab.

Preliminary investigations found that the boat capsized
as the steersman suddenly swerved it one side without slowing
down when the passengers had moved to the same side to have a
better look at wild animals on the banks of the lake.

The steersman Victor and sub-crew Aneesh had been
suspended.

The Kerala government has ordered a judicial probe into
the mishap and announced a Rs five lakh solatium each for the
next of kin of the victims. PTI GKN
RAI


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