India festival boat capsize kills 13 children

Rescue personnel prepare to conduct a search operation for the missing after a boat capsized in Ganga river in Bihar's Vaishali district on October 14, 2026. [AFP]

Rescuers dragged out 13 dead children from India's Ganges river after an overloaded boat capsized en route to a Hindu festival, officials said Wednesday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing grief over the "deeply painful" tragedy.

The boat overturned late Tuesday in Vaishali district in eastern Bihar state, with locals rushing to pull people out of the water in the dark using mobile phones to find the bodies.

"It was dark when we suddenly heard children screaming and crying for help as the boat capsized," Ravi Yadav, a young villager who joined the rescue effort, told AFP.

"We managed to rescue only three children, using the light from mobile phones and torches, because it was dark."

Villager Ramlakhan Rai said the boat was "small" and "not in good condition", saying people were crammed onto a vessel suitable for just a handful.

"It is devastating -- a few families have lost all their children," he said.

Six people were pulled out alive, including two children reported to be in critical condition.

Medic Nirmal Kumar, from the local health centre, said four children and two adults were sent to the district hospital.

"We tried our best to revive them... but 13 were already dead," Kumar said.

Vaishali district magistrate Varsha Singh told AFP 13 bodies had been recovered.

"The loss of lives in the boat capsizing incident in Vaishali, Bihar is deeply painful," Modi said in a statement on Wednesday, announcing compensation for their families.

"My thoughts are with the bereaved families in this difficult time."

Boat accidents are common on Indian waterways, often blamed on overcrowding, poor enforcement of safety norms and inadequate life-saving equipment.