A CORRESPONDENT
JORHAT: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said a high-level committee would inquire into the Nimatighat ferry accident. He also said that the government would ban all single-engine ferry services between Jorhat and Majuli.
On the bridge connecting Jorhat with Majuli, the Chief Minister said, "Necessary process is underway. The construction will start in November. It will take four years to complete the bridge. We will form a Group of Ministers (GoM) to review the construction of the bridge."
The Chief Minister rushed to the spot this morning. He told media persons that the government would ban all private single-engine ferries (around ten) running to and fro Majuli and Jorhat (there are about 10) under the Inland Water Transport Department (IWTD).
The Chief Minister, however, said that the ban on private ferries would not affect the services as the IWTD had four ferries of its own with twin engines, and two more were in the making. He said that the department would send the two new ferries to Majuli within 15 days.
Sarma further said that the government asked the Jorhat District Administration to file a criminal case.
Admitting negligence, the Chief Minister said that there was no ticketing system or names recorded as a result of which the actual figure passengers onboard the capsized ferry remained unknown. He said that the IWTD ferries deliberately delayed their timings to allow the private ferries being run under it to pick up more passengers as no tickets were issued.
"All these will come under the scanner of the probe panel, and everything would get streamlined. Two magistrates, one at Majuli and the other at Jorhat, will monitor the ferries so that they adhere to the timings," he said. He added that Jorhat and Majuli district administrations would fix the timings.
As per official figures, only two passengers – De Bikramjit Baruah, an ENT surgeon, and Indreswar Borah are missing. Paramita Das, a lecturer of Rangasahi College in Majuli, succumbed to her injuries at the Jorhat Medical College and Hospital.
The CM admitted that the figures could go up as there was no ticketing system, nor names recorded.
Regarding the ban of single-engine ferries, Sarma said that the private owners would have the option of installing marine engines to their ferries so that the IWTD could take them.
"Installing a marine engine entails an amount of Rs 10 lakh. We will give this amount – 75 per cent subsidy and 25 per cent loan to the owners if they want to upgrade and keep on earning from their ferries," Sarma said.
"The government will also issue a Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) to schedule health check-ups of those working on the boats," he said.
Regarding the RoRo vessels, Sarma said that the government would look into the reasons as to why they were not plying.
Referring to the modern Ro-Pax vessels, the Chief Minister said that the department would press the two vessels into service. "However, I will have a word with Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and AYUSH Sarbananda Sonowal for the dredging of the Brahmaputra between Nimatighat and Kamalabarighat as these boats require a certain depth to ply in a navigation channel," he said.
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