Staff Reporter :
After four days of the boat accident in the Karatoya River in Panchagarh district, the death toll on Wednesday stood at 69 while three others were still missing.
The divers recovered 68 bodies in the last three days of the accident. The deceased were mostly women, children and old men who were heading for the Bodeshwari temple by the overcrowded engine-run boat on Sunday.
The body which was recovered on Wednesday was Himaloy Chandra Roy. He was with her newly-wed wife on the boat to perform the Hindu rituals of Mahalaya.
Himaloy’s body was recovered from under the sands of the Karatoa River near the Auliaghat area of Mareya Bamonhat union of Boda Upazila of the district at 5pm, Additional District Magistrate and also the Chief of the Probe Committee Dipankar Roy said.
Himaloy, son of Birendra Nath Roy, was the resident of Khalpara area of Moydandighi Union of the Upazila. He was a post graduate student of Zoology department of Dinajpur Govt College. He got married on 3 August with the daughter of Robin Mitra in Jholoishalshiri union of the Upazila. Dipankar Roy said that there were still three persons missing and the rescue operation will continue till the final recovery.
Meanwhile, Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan said that there was negligence of the administration behind the boat accident.
“People in the Panchagarh district had never seen a boat accident like this. I have seen negligence here. The concerned persons of the Ghat did not play due role,” he said after visiting the family members of the deceased in Mareya Bamonhat Union on Wednesday.
“The passengers were negligent. The boatman should not board so many people. This was negligence of the Ghat authority,” he added.
He also said that the probe committee was directed to find out the responsible persons and action would be taken after the report.
