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43 feared dead as boat capsizes in Ganga

At least 43 people were missing after a boat sank in the Ganga river near Athamalgola in Patna district this morning, Bihar's Director General of Police K A Jacob said.

The ill-fated boat was carrying 66 passengers of whom 23 swam to safety, he said.

He had earlier said 60 people were feared drowned.

Only two bodies have been recovered and a search is on for the rest.

The overloaded country boat was swept away by strong currents.

Further details were not immediately available, he said.

Meanwhile, Railway Minister Nitish Kumar who represented the area in the dissolved Lok Sabha is rushing to the accident site from New Delhi.

Jacob said senior civil and police officers are camping at the spot and a massive rescue operation has been launched. Divers have been deployed to fish out bodies which might have been swept away by the strong current.

UNI

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