Dhaka : An overloaded passenger ferry with about 200 passengers aboard capsized on Monday in the river Padma, near Munshiganj district, about 30 km southwest of Dhaka, the chief of the district administration told Reuters.
Mohammad Saiful Hasan Badal, the Deputy Commissioner of the district, said 44 passengers had been rescued from the vessel, identified as the Pinak-6. No deaths had yet been reported. Teams from the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority and the army were engaged in the rescue operation. The ferry began its journey in Madaripur and was believed to be carrying between 170 and 200 passengers.
“We have heard that the ferry was overloaded with passengers and the river was rough,” local police chief Tofazzal Hossain told AFP. Ferry accidents are common in Bangladesh, with overcrowding, and poor ship design and maintenance often to blame. Bangladesh has more than 230 rivers and boats are the main form of travel, especially in the southern and northeastern regions.