Kamal Ghorui
BARGI (JABALPUR): A survivor of the Bargi Dam cruise accident has alleged that the boat’s pilot and crew abandoned passengers moments before the vessel sank, leaving them to fend for themselves in rapidly worsening conditions.Advocate Roshan Anand Verma, who was travelling with nine family members, said the weather was calm when they boarded the cruise. However, as the boat reached the middle of the reservoir, strong winds arose suddenly, generating large waves that began striking the vessel. Water started entering the boat, triggering panic among passengers.
Verma claimed that no lifejackets were provided at the beginning of the journey. As the situation deteriorated, he alleged that the pilot and crew jumped into the water to save themselves, causing chaos among those on board who were left without instructions.Acting quickly, Verma said, he rushed to the lower deck, retrieved lifejackets, and began distributing them. However, the boat sank rapidly, leaving many passengers with little time to put them on properly.Verma confirmed that all members of his family survived.Nine deaths have been confirmed and six people are still missing in the Bargi cruise tragedy. Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav visited the site on Friday and ordered a high-level probe as rescue teams continued search operations, but there was no certainty about how many people were on board.Meanwhile, cruise pilot Mahesh Patel, helper Chhotelal Gond and ticket counter in-charge Brijendra have been removed from service. Sunil Maravi, manager of Hotel Maikal Resort and Boat Club Bargi, has been suspended. MPTDC regional manager Sanjay Malhotra has been attached to headquarters and a departmental inquiry initiated against him.Pilot Mahesh said the weather changed suddenly. “Safety measures were in place, but the storm was severe. The cruise went out of control and there was no time to react,” he said.Officials said 28 people have been rescued so far. Bodies were recovered in phases, four on Thursday evening and five more during continued operations on Friday. The bodies are of eight women and one child.The identities of four of the six missing people are known.Authorities said there is no confirmed passenger list. Bargi city SP Anjul Ayank Mishra said officers relied on CCTV footage from the entry gate to estimate numbers. Based on this, around 43 people are believed to have boarded the cruise. However, tickets were issued to only 29 passengers. Officials suspect that several people boarded without tickets, which has made it difficult to confirm how many are still unaccounted for.The accident took place about 300 metres from shore. Officials said strong winds of up to 74 kmph hit the area at the time. The vessel began to list towards one side and sank quite quickly.Rescue operations began soon after the incident. The SDRF, NDRF, Army and para commandos have been deployed. Divers are continuing to search the reservoir. The cruise vessel was pulled out of the water on Friday afternoon.The CM said a committee of senior officials has been formed to investigate the cause of the accident and examine safety arrangements. He also met survivors during his visit.The deceased have been identified as Neetu Soni (43) of Kotwali in Jabalpur, Soubhagyam Alagan (42) of Tamil Nadu, Madhur Massey (62) of New Delhi, Kakulazhi (38) of Jabalpur, Reshma Syed (66) of Jabalpur, Shamim Naqvi (68) of Bhopal, Marina Massey (39) of Delhi, her four-year-old son Trishan, and Jyoti Sen of Jabalpur.Those still missing include Sritamil (5), son of Kamaraj; Kamaraj, son of Sriramalingam; Viraj Soni (6), son of Krishna Soni; Mayuram (9), son of Parimal. The identities of two others are yet to be confirmed.
