Mumbai boat tragedy: Missing boy's body found after 3 days

The body of a 7-year-old boy missing after the ferry-Navy craft collision off Mumbai coast was found on Saturday morning, taking the death toll in the December 18 tragedy to 15, officials said.

The search operation, however, would continue till the ferry boat is made upright and it is confirmed that there is no unaccounted body left, said a Navy official.

Naval boats found the body of Johan Mohammad Nisar Ahmed Pathan in the Mumbai harbour area after three days of search.

The Navy has already launched a probe into the crash, one of the deadliest in the city's harbour area.

A naval helicopter and boats of the Navy and Coast Guard were deployed to look for the missing passengers.

Of 113 persons on board both the vessels, 15 died and 98, including two injured, were rescued.

There were six persons on board the Navy craft, of which two survived.

The speeding Navy craft undergoing engine trials lost control and crashed into passenger ferry 'Neel Kamal' on the afternoon of December 18.

The ferry, carrying more than 100 passengers, was on its way from Gateway of India to Elephanta Island, a popular tourist attraction famous for its cave temples.

Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB) records showed that the boat had the permission to carry 84 passengers and six crew members, but was overloaded, police said.

The MMB, which is conducting its own investigation, cancelled the licence of the ferry as the vessel was overloaded and thus violated the Inland Vessel Act.

A case has been registered against the Navy craft's driver at Colaba police station under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections related to 'causing death by negligence', 'actions that endanger the personal safety or life of others', 'rash or negligent navigation of a vessel' and 'acts of mischief that cause wrongful loss or damage to individuals or the public'.

The accident-affected craft is in the custody of the Navy, and police will demand it whenever needed for investigation, officials said.