Rescuers look for 10 missing in Odisha boat accident

Rescuers Monday looked for 10 picnickers who are still missing after a boat capsized in Odisha's Hirakud reservoir, leaving 11 dead.

The rescue operation continued through the night with the help of flash lights, but no more bodies were retrieved, an official said.

More fire fighters and Orissa Disaster Rapid Action Force units joined the operation Monday and the rescue operation has been intensified, B.K. Pradhan, an official told IANS.

The boat which went down in the Hirakud Dam, about 350 km from the state capital Bhubaneswar, at about 4.30 p.m. Sunday, was carrying more than 100 people against a capacity of 70. Most of the passengers were picnickers.

The accident occurred when the people from Sambalpur and nearby areas were returning after attending a picnic on the other side of reservoir.

Eyewitnesses said the mechanized boat capsized after water entered into it following a snag in the middle of the reservoir. The passengers tried to drain out the water from the boat, but in vain.

Many of the picnickers also jumped out from the boat in panic. They said the boat did not have basic safety measures.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed grief and announced that his government will bear the cost of the survivors' treatment.