Three people, including a child, died after a small boat capsized at Merbil in Assam’s Lakhimpur district on October 4 morning. PTI’s report that afternoon and separate accounts by India Today NE and Hub Network confirm the deaths in the Ghilamara area.
PTI, citing police, reported that the occupants were local villagers crossing the water body for cattle-related work. India Today NE reported that police and residents carried out a rescue operation and recovered all three victims. The available accounts do not establish the precise mechanism that caused the boat to overturn.
Hub Network reported that the victims were taken to Ghilamara Block Primary Health Centre, where the doctor on duty declared them dead on arrival. The Subansiri Revenue Circle officer conducted an inquest there, and the bodies were then sent to Lakhimpur Medical College and Hospital for postmortem examination.
Reports mention increased water levels, but that observation is not a completed finding on the cause. The reviewed material does not establish whether the boat had a defect, was overloaded or carried safety equipment. The confirmed developments are the capsize, recovery of three victims and the medical and inquest procedures that followed.