Boat capsize: Rs 2L ex-gratia for kin of deceased in Malda

The West Bengal government on Tuesday handed over an ex-gratia amount of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the six persons from Malda district who died at a recent boat capsize in Mahananda river.

State minister Md Ghulam Rabbani handed over the cheques to the kin of the deceased at Chanchol in the district.

Nine people had died in a boat capsize in Mahananda river bordering West Bengal and Bihar on October 3.

The incident happened when over 80 people were being ferried across the river.

While six of the nine deceased were from Malda's Chanchol, one was from Itahar in Uttar Dinajpur district and two were from Bihar.

Malda District Magistrate Kaushik Bhattacharya, State Women's Commission vice-chairperson Mausam Benazir Noor and Zilla Parishad president Gour Chandra Mondal were among those present during the handing over of the cheques.