Jabalpur tragedy: Helmsman breaks silence, says he ‘jumped last’ as toll hits 11

DIvers recovered the bodies of 2 children from Bargi dam up on sat eventide, nurture the death toll from the Narmada Queen capsize to 11, as the boat’s helmsman broke his silence to defend himself against mounting criticism — saying he had jumped only after all passengers had done so and was just 50 to 60 metres from shore when the vessel went down.One of the children was identified as six-year-old Viraj Soni; the second remained unidentified. City superintendent of police Anjul Mishra confirmed that three people — a woman, a man, and one unidentified individual — are still missing. “Divers recovered the bodies of two children around 6pm on Saturday,” he said.Helmsman Mahesh Patel, who faces termination and has been at the centre of public criticism since the accident, gave his first account of the capsize on Saturday. “I am shocked people are blaming me. I jumped only after all passengers had jumped,” he said, adding that he had alerted the Boat Club control room when conditions worsened.Also Read | Bargi Dam tragedy: Bodies of mother, son found in final embracePatel, who said he has 20 years of experience, maintained that he had asked passengers to wear life-jackets and tried to secure the vessel as the storm hit. “I ferried the boat six times a day for years. I never saw such an incident. It was nature’s fury,” he said. He added that he has been unable to sleep or eat since the tragedy.The IMD had issued a yellow alert for thunderstorms in Jabalpur district for Thursday — a forecast, survivors said, that should have kept the boat ashore.Patel said some passengers were dancing when the boat began taking on water. “At that critical moment, I was unable to anchor it. We were just 50 to 60 metres from the shore when it capsized,” he said.Videos from the incident show passengers being handed life-jackets, though many said it was not until it was already too late that the life jackets were brought on the deck.Officials said 43 tourists had boarded the vessel on Thursday, with 42 accounted for so far. 29 people were rescued and three are missing.Search operations, which resumed on Saturday morning, were repeatedly disrupted by sudden storms and high waves.Arrangements are underway to repatriate the bodies of victims to their hometowns in Tamil Nadu and Delhi. The bodies of Sowbhagyam Alagar of Tiruppur (Tamil Nadu) and Kakujhali of Khamariya (Jabalpur) were transported to Coimbatore. Kakujhali’s five-year-old son was recovered Saturday evening, while her husband Kamaraj and nephew Mayuram remain missing.Arnab Dasgupta, a union leader at the Jabalpur Ordnance Factory, said the family of employee Kamraj K would be flown by chartered plane to Trichy. “The relatives wish to perform the final rites in their native village. The Tamil Nadu government has arranged onward transport from the airport,” he said.