Eighty Drowned in Indian State of Bihar
'Pakistan Times' Wire Service

NEW DELHI: About eighty persons including women and children were drowned on Monday night in Indian state of Bihar when a boat carrying 100 persons capsized in swollen Ganga river.

Media reports said on Tuesday the boat was carrying passengers from Patna to Samastipur district.

But, when it reached near Shahpur Patori, it went down due to fast moving water currents. Some of the passengers swam to safety while about eighty persons feared drowned.

Officials said the rescue operation has been launched to recover the bodies from the river.

A few days back, in the same state which is facing the worst flood situation, a boat was capsized killing about 28 persons.

According to officials in the state, more than 100 million people were affected due to floods as most of the districts in Bihar state were inundated.

Relief operation has been launched including the use of helicopters to drop food for stranded people on the high grounds.●