At least two persons, both minors, drowned in the Bagmati near Akhta Ghat in Sitamarhi district, around 170km north of Patna on Monday.

The mishap occurred when a boat carrying 40 people capsized in the swollen river around noon. However, the residents on the banks of the river rescued most of them. The boat was carrying more people than its capacity, said sources.

The deceased have been identified as Asha Kumari, 8, a resident of Marta village and Karan Kumar Sah, a resident of Bairgania in Sitamarhi district. So far, only the body of Asha has been recovered.

Sitamarhi superintendent of police P.K. Sinha said a group of divers has been pressed into service to recover the body of the 15-year-old boy. “The boat was overloaded, which led to the accident,” he said. “Rescue operations were launched soon after getting information about the accident.” Senior civil and police officials were camping at the site.

Resident said illegal ferrying was going on unabated in the area. “As usual, the boat was carrying more people than its capacity. The death toll could have been higher, had the boat capsized midstream,” said one of them.

The residents said the boat met the watery grave soon after it left the western bank of the river. Boats ferry people from west of Akhta Ghat to east of Akhta Ghat without any approval from the district administration.

Sitamarhi SP said action would be initiated against the boatman for ferrying people without valid licence from the district administration. “Instructions have been issued to the station house officer of Majorganj police station to lodge an FIR against the boatman concerned,” he said.

Akhta Ghat falls under the jurisdiction of Majorganj police station. This incident is the third of such in the bordering areas of Sitamarhi and Muzaffarpur in the past month. Earlier, two people each were drowned near Arthar village and at Shivaipatti in Muzaffarpur.