A boat carrying nearly two dozen people, including schoolchildren, capsized in the Jhelum River in Srinagar, killing at least four people and leaving several others missing, officials said on Tuesday.
“Seven people were brought to the hospital, and out of them, four were brought dead,” the Medical Superintendent of Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS), Dr Muzaffar Zaragar, told UNI.
“Three others are being treated here, ” SMHS source said.
Search and rescue operations by several agencies, including the State Disaster Response Force, are underway to locate the missing.
“The rescue operation is still underway, and as per the initial input, there were 19 people on board,” the commandant of SDRF, Atul Sharma, said.
A pall of gloom descended on the area, with residents hitting out at the government for not constructing a bridge in the area.
“ The work on the bridge has been going on fast for the last two decades, and this tragedy would have been avoided had this bridge been completed,” fumed a local resident.
Kashmir has been witnessing incessant rain for the last two days, which has led to an increase in the water levels of several bodies of water, including Jhelum. This morning, Jhelum was flowing close to the flood alarm level in Srinagar.
