10 rescued from sinking barge in Geonkhali

GEONKHALI (EAST MIDNAPORE): Ten people on board a sinking barge were brought to safety by locals at East Midnapore’s Geonkhali on Tuesday. The incident took place at the confluence of the rivers Rupnarayan and Hooghly at Badurnatpatia.
Locals said when the barge started sinking, people on board, including the sailors and some labours gathered outside the cabin.When the local fishermen’s boat reached the barge before it completely drowned, all 10 boarded the boat and were carried to the river bank. Less than two months ago, on July 20, a passenger ship heading to the Andaman & Nicobar Islands had hit a jetty on the river bank at Geonkhali.
Hariballabhpur gram panchayat member Mamtaz Mullick, who was on the river bank and organised the rescue effort. She arranged the boat within minutes and informed the local Sutahata police station. Cops from Sutahata and Mahisadal reached the spot and joined the rescue operation. By then, the river was on high tide. The barge drowned in another four hours.
Mumtaz said, “A large number of boats and barges sail along the river. Siltation of the river is increasing day by day but no dredging operation is ever carried out. Vessels prefer to sail along the East Midnapore stretch of the rivers as depth is greater on our side during high tide.”