Telangana resort booked for death of two women tourists in boat accident

Hyderabad, July 7 (IANS) Police in Telangana’s Vikrabad district registered a case of negligence against a resort after a boat accident resulting in the death the two tourists from Bihar.

Vikarabad police registered a case against Wilderness Lakefront Resort over the death of two women in a boat accident on Saturday.

Police said on Monday that they booked a case under Section 106 (1) (causing death by negligence) of the Bharat Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and took up further investigation.

The women from Patna drowned in Sarpanpally Lake after their boat capsized during a sudden spell of rain and strong winds.

The deceased were identified as Ritu Kumari, 52, and Poonam Singh, 53.

The two women, accompanied by their granddaughters, Inshika, aged 3.5 years, and Ivanshi, aged 1.5 years, went boating along with a boat operator.

However, weather conditions deteriorated minutes after the boat entered the water. Due to rain and strong winds, the boat overturned, throwing all occupants into the lake.

The two young girls were rescued by other family members, who rushed to help them. However, both Rita Kumari and Poonam Singh lost consciousness. They were pulled out to safety, and CPR was administered on the spot. However, both were pronounced dead at the hospital.

A relative, Alok Kumar, who attempted to rescue the victims, was injured and admitted to a private hospital in Vikarabad.

The family, visiting Hyderabad, had arrived in Vikarabad for the holiday outing, but it turned tragic for them.

The family alleged that the resort did not take safety measures, resulting in the accident. On their complaint, police registered a case and took up an investigation.

Local leaders of CPI-M staged a protest, demanding compensation for the family of the victims. They demanded that criminal cases be booked against those responsible for the tragedy.

They said the government should take action to seize the boat and initiate criminal proceedings against the resort.

BJP MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy on Sunday visited the accident site and said that the boat was being operated illegally by a resort being run on assigned land illegally.

The Lok Sabha member from Chevella said that the boat was being operated without permission from the Irrigation, Tourism, Revenue, and Police Departments.

"There were no trained Life Guards there. They build dangerous floating bedrooms on floating drums and plastic/fibreglass pontoons and renting them out to couples. All these departments should immediately initiate an investigation and stop all such illegal activities in Vikarabad," Reddy posted on X.

--IANS

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