Jharkhand: Driver missing, 3 trucks sink in Ganges in Sahibganj

DUMKA: A 34-year-old driver is feared to have drowned while three stone chop-laden trucks sunk after a barge them tilted on the Ganges near the Sobhanpur bank in Sahibganj district on Friday morning.
The missing driver is identified as Mohammad Sarfuddin. The Sahibganj administration said the barge was carrying construction materials for building a pillar of an under-construction bridge over the Ganges, which will connect Sahibganj with Manihari in Bihar .
Talking to TOI, Sahibganj deputy commissioner Ram Niwas Yadav said, "The vessel was about to sail when a tyre of one of the trucks on board burst, forcing it to tilt. Rescue operations are underway to find the missing person, who was one of the drivers of the three trucks."
The district administration will also carry out investigations to ascertain whether the incident occurred due to any technical snag in the barge. The vessel was hired by a private company - Dilip Buildcon Limited (DBL). The company has won the contract for laying the foundations of the bridge. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation of the project in 2017 along with the multi-modal port in the district.
"The DBL authorities have been directed to produce a fitness certificate of the vessel before resuming the service to transport construction materials to different construction sites," the DC said.