Lucknow: At least 20 people drowned when their boat capsized on Monday during a prayer ceremony on the river Ganges in northern India, senior officials said.
The vessel, with about 60 people on board, turned over in the fast-flowing water, district administrator Senthil Pandyan said by telephone from Uttar Pradesh state, where the accident occurred.
Many of the victims were thought likely to be young as the ceremony was for families to bless their children.
"So far we have recovered 20 bodies. We suspect another 10 or 20 people may have drowned," Pandyan, the chief official for Ballia district, told AFP.
"This group wanted to perform some special prayers that required them to be in the middle of the river. When the boat got to the middle, it capsized in strong currents," he added.
About 20 people managed to swim to the banks of the Ganges, which is revered as a holy river by Hindus.
Rescue efforts were underway to find the missing people, many of whom may have been swept far downriver.
"The tragedy apparently occurred on account of overloading of the boat, which did not have the capacity to carry more than 25 persons," Brij Lal, the senior supervising police official told AFP in the state capital Lucknow.
Lal predicted the death toll was likely to rise.
Fatal boat accidents are common in India, mainly caused by overcrowding, poor maintenance of vessels and a lack of life jackets and other safety equipment.
