A boat carrying at least 40 media personnel and officials of the Maharashtra government, including Chief Secretary Dinesh Kumar Jain capsized near the site of the proposed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj memorial, about 2.6 km off Mumbai’s coast on Wednesday. It is not yet known if there were any casualties.
The boat overturned around 4.15 pm, Mid Day reported. The Indian Coast Guard, marine police and other agencies launched a massive rescue operation along with two helicopters. An unidentified government official said most passengers had been rescued. However, the Hindustan Times reported that water entered the boat.
“Coast Guard hovercraft reached the spot,” the Indian Coast Guard said in a statement according to NDTV. “Our choppers were also involved in the rescue.”
The passengers were on their way to perform a puja at the memorial. The ritual had to be cancelled following the incident.
