Patna: Raghopur circle officer (CO) Deepak Kumar has been removed from his post following the boat tragedy in Vaishali district that claimed 13 lives, mostly children, on Oct 13. Patepur CO Prabhat Kumar has been given additional charge of Raghopur.The CO is responsible for monitoring boating safety in riverine areas. In case of negligence or danger to passengers, the officer is required to take immediate action and inform officials concerned. If a boat is in poor condition or at risk of sinking, its operation must be stopped. The CO is also required to check the boat’s condition, passenger-carrying capacity and safety equipment.After an accident, the CO has to coordinate with the administration, police, health department, SDRF and other rescue teams to take the injured to hospital, search for missing persons and assist affected families.Vaishali district magistrate (DM) Varsha Singh said, “After the accident, local people alleged that Raghopur CO Deepak was informed earlier about the dilapidated condition of the boat, but no action was taken. Villagers alleged that administrative officers reached the spot late after the accident. They had to carry out rescue operations on their own with limited resources.”According to the DM, the private boat involved in the accident had been used by the district administration for disaster relief work from Aug to Sept. The boat already had a hole, which had been covered with a steel plate. On Oct 13, the plate came off during the accident and water started filling the boat.The administration has ordered a survey, physical verification and registration of private boats. It is also investigating where and at what level monitoring failed before the accident.
