The relatives of the missing passengers of the launch Pinak-6, which capsized in Padma River at Lauhajang upazila in Munshiganj on Monday, expressed their anger, as the authorities failed to locate the launch even after five days of the incident.The family members and the relatives of the missing people had given up the hope of getting them alive, but they want their bodies. In this situation, most families of the missing people started searching for bodies on their own by hiring trawlers in different areas where the bodies were found earlier. Even they searched the bodies in the Bay of Bengal. The local administration admitted that the presence of the relatives at the Mawa Ferry Terminal was becoming thin gradually on account of the uncertainty of locating the sunken launch. According to the claim of the authorities, hundred percent efforts with the latest technology and well-equipped machines are being used to locate the sunken vessel, but in vain till now. As part of the ‘desperate’ efforts, another salvage ship ‘Jarip-10’, equipped with latest technology, reached Mawa Ghat in Lauhajang upazila on Friday morning. Habibul Alam, Deputy Director of Bangladesh Navy, said that the ‘Jarip-10’ started its operation with ‘Kandari-2’ to locate the ill-fated launch. Earlier, salvage vessels ‘Rustom’ and ‘Nirbhik’ failed to locate the launch due to strong current in the turbulent river. Captain of Bangladesh Navy Nurul Islam said that they were using all the latest technology to locate the launch and rescue the missing passengers. A joint intensive search is continuing with side-scan SONAR machines, and it would continue until the launch is located, he said. The divers of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), Fire Brigade and Bangladesh Navy, Police and Coast Guard were jointly operating the rescue operation. Meanwhile, the death toll from the tragic incident rose to 41 with the recovery of six more bodies from different points of the rivers Padma and Meghna on Friday. The bodies were found floating in the rivers near Shariatpur, Bhola and Barisal. Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Munshiganj Md Saiful Hasan said that 132 people remained missing till Friday.The body of a woman was found floating in the Padma River near Shariatpur in the morning, while the body of a five year old boy was found floating in the Meghna near Bhola. Another floating body was recovered from the said river near Barisal. Police recovered three other floating bodies from the Meghna River in the district in the early hours. Officer-in-Charge of Mehendiganj (Barisal) Police Station Ujjal Kumar Dey said that they recovered unidentified body of a youth at Ulania in the morning. Officer-in-Charge of Hizla Police Station Shawkat Anwar said that after being informed by the local UP chairman, they recovered the bodies of a man, a woman and a child from Baluchar in the upazila in early hours. Of the total 41 rescued bodies, 23 were handed over to the victims’ family members, while 12 bodies were buried in the Graveyard of Shibchar Municipality in Madaripur following the Namaj-e-Janaza after Jumma prayers, as the identities of them could not be known. Earlier, 18 bodies were kept on the Pachhar Primary School premises in Shipchar for identification.Meanwhile, a youth confused the local administration and the newsman, claiming that he was a passenger of the submerged vessel and he was floating alive since the incident. The local administration said that the youth- Sarwar Hawlader from Madaripur tried to defraud the administration in a bid to get Tk 20, 000 which amount is being given to each the rescued passenger of the launch. Earlier, a rumour was spread for several hours that a youth was rescued alive after five days of the incident. On the other hand, a delegate team of the BNP (Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Dal) visited the spot. The party Vice-Chairman Shah Moazzem Hossain led the team. Talking to the media, he expressed frustration over the failure of tracing the launch and dillydallying of the rescue operation. He blamed the government for the incident. Senior Awami League leader Suranjit Sengupta at a meeting in the city also said that failing to locate sunken launch in this age of technological and scientific advance is shameful. He sought Prime Minister’s intervention for a permanent solution in this regard.
