Jabalpur cruise accident: Bodies of woman, child tied in one life jacket retrieved at Bargi Dam after boat capsized

The bodies of a woman and her child, found tied together with a single life jacket, were recovered from the reservoir at Bargi Dam, located on the Narmada River, in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur after a cruise boat capsized on Thursday night. The death toll in the tragedy has risen to nine, while the search continues for six others unaccounted for. Meanwhile, as many as 28 people have been rescued.

An Agra-based diving team described the difficult conditions inside the submerged vessel, saying the confined space and protruding iron rods forced rescuers to use hammers to make small openings, and that one diver nearly got trapped during the operation.

One of the divers told PTI that they faced challenges in retrieving a woman’s body from the wreckage in starting, but later realised she was holding her child tightly, making it hard to separate them.

"We initially encountered difficulty retrieving the body of a woman from the wreckage. We then discovered that she was holding her child tightly, and it was difficult to separate them. Our team was deeply moved by the scene," the diver said.

The Water Resources and Public Works departments, along with a construction agency linked to a nearby water plant, are assisting with technical and engineering support. Singh noted that workers from a local construction firm were the first to reach the site and played a crucial role in helping survivors safely reach the shore after escaping the boat.

He further said that the submerged vessel will be retrieved only after the search is fully completed and authorities are certain that no more bodies remain inside.

Meanwhile, Kori, one of the 16 survivors, alleged that the vessel was carrying around 40 people, including children without tickets, and claimed that the driver ignored warnings from locals to move the boat to safety.

As per PTI, with tears in eyes, she stated, “Six of us had come from Delhi to visit Jabalpur. Around 4 pm, we decided on a whim to go to Bargi Dam. Around 6 pm, the cruise was returning when the winds became strong, and water started entering the boat.”

CM Mohan Yadav expressed condolences to the families of the victims and said that local residents who risked their lives to rescue others during the accident would be honoured for their bravery on Independence Day.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences over the loss of lives and announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh for the families of the victims, while those injured would receive ₹50,000.