Srinagar: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha today met the family members of the victims who lost their lives in the heartbreaking boat tragedy on April 16. Also searches continued or three missing persons but there was trace of them.
The teams are looking for Farhan Waseem Parray, 7, Showkat Ahmad Sheikh, 40 and his son Haziq Showkat, 9.
Six people, including two children and their mother, died and three went missing as a boat carrying the students to school on Tuesday morning capsized on the Jhelum in Gandbal. All the children on the board studied in the Kendriya Vidyalaya in Sonwar across the river. The boat overturned around 8 am after hitting an iron pole in the middle of the river as the wooden boat headed east from Gandabal towards Batwara in the Srinagar city, with 15 passengers on board.
Officials said that rescue teams of SDRF, NDRF and Marcos searched the turbid water of the river Jhelum downstream from Gandbal to Raj Bagh while divers went under water to look for any signs of the three missing persons.
A police official said that the rescue operation continued the searches but so far “we couldn’t find anything. The search operation is still going on.”
Their families along with hundreds of people continue to line the banks of river Jhelum waiting for any trace of their loved ones.
The divers were looking for specific places where they think a dead body can be found owing to the fast flowing water currents.
Meanwhile The Lt Governor expressed his condolences to the bereaved families and assured all help and support to them.
“The UT Administration stands shoulder to shoulder with the families in this hour of grief,” he said.
On April 7, the government provided an ex-gratia relief of Rs five lakh each to the next of kin of the victims of the tragedy.
Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, V K Bhiduri and Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, Bilal Mohiuddin visited Gandbal and met the families of the victims who drowned in the river.
The officials consoled the loss the life and provided an ex-gratia of Rs five Lakh to the next of kin of each deceased.
Six persons drowned in the river while three others are still missing after a boat carrying several persons capsized

KR Desk