Andhra Pradesh: Govt sanctions ex-gratia for victims of boat tragedy

The Andhra Pradesh Government has sanctioned Rs 1.20 crore under the Chief Minister's Relief Fund as ex-gratis to those families who lost people in in the tragic boat accident in Godavari near Kachuluru Village of Devipatnam Mandal. On September 15 this year, the Royal Vasishta carrying 77 people on board capsized in the Godavari river. Only 26 survived.

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Andhra Government sanctions ex-gratis 

The Andhra Pradesh Government has released an order to sanction ex-gratis of Rs 10 lakh each to the twelve families of the deceased persons in the incident. Meanwhile, a magisterial enquiry into the incident also began on Friday. The East Godavari Joint Collector Lakshmi Shah said the enquiry will be carried out in a fair manner and the report would be submitted to the government within 15 days. A special committee to look into the matter has also been formed. According to reports, The Revenue Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary of Tourism, Additional DG of Law and Order and Collector of East Godavari are included as the members on the committee.

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Royal Vasishta retrieved

Dharma  Satyam's team achieved the target of retrieving Royal Vasishta boat from River Godavari on Tuesday after 38 days of the accident. The Royal Vasishta boat capsized in river Godavari on September 15. Of the 77 persons on board, only 26 persons survived. The boat was then brought out of the river and pulled to the shore on October 22. Of the total, 26 were rescued, bodies of 46 have been retrieved while five remain missing. "We hope that the remaining bodies will also be traced out in a day or two," said Nishant Kumar, PO, ITDA, Rampachodavaram. The boat owner and operator were arrested for operating the vessel despite a ban due to the floods, said the authorities. 

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(With agency inputs)