Sambalpur, Feb. 8: It has been a year since a boat capsized at the Hirakud dam reservoir. The tragedy snatched the lives of 31 picnickers. Call it the gravity of the situation or downright apathy, the fact remains that boat service is yet to resume from the Sonutikra ghat.

Lions Club of Sambalpur organised a picnic on February 9 last year. Members boarded a boat to go to Marangdungri, which lies on the other side of the reservoir. While returning, the boat capsized and 31 picnickers lost their lives. Following the incident, the boat service was immediately stopped from the Sonutikra ghat.

Before the accident, two boats regularly ferried passengers from Sonutikra ghat that falls under Talab panchayat in Dhankauda block of Sambalpur district and Marangdungri ghat in Tilia panchayat under Lakhanpur block of Jhasuguda district. Hundreds of people took the ferry service to Jharsuguda from Sonutikra ghat on a regular basis.

The ghat now wears a pale shadow of its past and all activities have come to a standstill right after the accident.

Around 114 persons had gone for a picnic to Marangdungri. Around 25 regular passengers also boarded the boat. Tragedy struck while they were returning to Sambalpur when the boat capsized in the middle of the reservoir and 31 people including 19 females met their watery grave.

A city-based businessman, Ashok Jalan, who survived the mishap said: "I can never forget the incident. I survived the mishap and also managed to rescue my wife and some other people. But many of my own people drowned in front of my eyes. Erasing the memory of the tragedy is an impossible task."

"We have decided to construct a memorial tower of the dead picnickers and have requested the district collector to provide us space for this purpose. Moreover, we have also procured 100 life jackets. We will distribute the life jackets once the boat service resumes," said Jalan.

The block development officer of Dhankauda block, Ashok Kumar Gartia said: "The boat service has been stopped from the Sonutikra ghat. The service can resume only after we get the clearance from the district emergency office."