Mumbai boat accident: PM announces Rs 2 lakh ex-gratia to kin of deceased

Thirteen persons died and several others were rescued after a Navy craft crashed into a ferry off the Mumbai coast on Wednesday,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday condoled the loss of lives in a boat accident off the Mumbai coast and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased.

Thirteen persons died and 99 others were rescued after a Navy craft crashed into a ferry off the Mumbai coast on Wednesday, the Navy said. 

At about 4 pm, a Navy craft undergoing engine trials lost control and collided with passenger ferry Neel Kamal off Karanja near Mumbai, the Navy said in a statement. The ferry was carrying passengers from the Gateway of India to Elephanta Island, a popular tourist destination.

"The boat mishap in Mumbai is saddening. Condolences to the bereaved families. I pray that the injured recover soon. Those affected are being assisted by the authorities," Modi was quoted as saying by his office in a post on X.

"The Prime Minister has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF for the next of kin of each deceased in the boat mishap in Mumbai. The injured would be given Rs 50,000," the PMO said.

Search and Rescue efforts were immediately launched by the Navy in coordination with the Coast Guard and Marine Police. Four naval helicopters, 11 naval craft, one Coast Guard boat and three Marine Police boats were involved in the rescue efforts, the Navy said.

The survivors picked up by Navy and civil craft in the area have been transferred to jetties and hospitals in the vicinity. So far, 99 survivors have been rescued, it added.

The accident led to the loss of 13 lives, including a Naval personnel and two from the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) on board the Naval craft, the Navy said.  Meanwhile, an FIR under relevant sections of the new criminal code BNS was registered at the Colaba police station in south Mumbai against the Navy speed boat driver and others responsible for the tragedy, an official said.

The FIR was filed on a complaint lodged by survivor Natharam Chaudhary (22), a resident of Mumbai's Sakinaka area, he said.

The BNS sections invoked in the FIR included those related to causing death by negligence, actions that endanger the personal safety or life of others, rash or negligent navigation of a vessel and acts of mischief that cause wrongful loss or damage to individuals or the public.