Srinagar, Apr 26: The tragic aftermath of the Gandbal Srinagar boat capsize incident continues to unfold as the body of a minor boy, who had been missing for 11 days, was retrieved from the River Jhelum near the Old Zero Bridge at Rajbagh while his father who also drowned is still untraceable.
He has been identified as 9-year-old Haziq Showkat, son of Showkat Ahmad Sheikh of Gandbal.
The other two missing in the boat tragedy are his father Showkat, and another boy Farhan Waseem Parray.
“Joint parties of J&K Police and SDRF retrieved the body of a minor boy late Friday afternoon,” a senior Police officer said. “Searches for two other missing persons are underway with intensity.”
The retrieval of the boy’s body near the Old Zero Bridge marked a sombre conclusion to the search efforts that had been ongoing since the boat capsized in the Gandbal area of Srinagar.
The young victim’s remains have been transferred to Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) Hospital in Srinagar for medico-legal formalities.
“Exhaustive efforts are being carried out by the rescue teams and there has been no success in locating two other missing individuals so far,” a senior Police officer said. “Now an additional customised boat has been added to the fleet of boats engaged in the rescue operation.”
The boat carrying 19 passengers and heading east from Gandabal towards Batwara in Srinagar capsized around 11 days ago after hitting an iron pole in the middle of the river.
All the children onboard were students of Kendriya Vidyalaya at Sonwar, located across the river.
Police said that they were committed to continuing the search and rescue operation until the missing individuals were located.
“To find them, our teams are working tirelessly, braving adverse weather conditions,” Police said, urging the local community to extend their full cooperation to the rescue teams and to provide any information that might assist in locating the missing individuals.
Police said that the rescue teams including the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and Marcos, had been tirelessly searching the turbid waters of the River Jhelum, spanning 4 to 5 km downstream from Gandbal to Raj Bagh.
Divers have been deployed to search underwater for any signs of now two missing persons.