Kerala boat accident: The owner of the Atlantic boat that capsized on Sunday in the Tanur area of Kerala's Malappuram district, resulting in the death of 22 individuals, including 15 children, has been arrested, said police. He was caught from the Kozhikode beach area of the district today.
The boat owner, Nasar, was confirmed by a senior police officer of the Malappuram district. "He has been caught from the Calicut (Kozhikode) beach area. He has not been arrested formally. He will be brought here (Malappuram)," the officer said.
Kerala govt announces judicial probe
The state government Monday announced a judicial probe into the boat capsized incident. The Kerala government also declared to give an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh each to the kin of the deceased. A judicial commission comprising technical experts will be formed. A Special investigation team of the Kerala police will also probe the matter.
Boat did not have a licence to function
According to Tanur police, the owner of the boat had been absconding. Tanur police said a case was registered yesterday itself against the owner of the boat, which reportedly did not have a licence to function. The boat capsized near an estuary close to the Thoovaltheeram beach in the Tanur area around 7.30 PM on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, Minister Rajan said that seven teams including National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indian Coast Guard, Fire and Safety, the Navy and local people were involved in the search and rescue. One more NDRF team would join the efforts, he added. "The deaths of 22 people have been confirmed. We have identified that there were 37 persons on the vessel. Five of them swam to safety yesterday. It was a private boat and there is no official count of passengers," Rajan said.
Meanwhile, the Navy said three naval diving teams comprising 15 divers along with all necessary diving sets, gear and equipment had been mobilised from Kochi for the rescue efforts. "Close coordination is being maintained with the disaster management and state authorities to augment the search operations," the Navy said.
(With PTI inputs)
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