The death toll in a ferry capsize near India's Bay of Bengal rose to 41 as divers searched Monday for dozens of people missing in the turbulent waters, news reports said, DPA reported.
A crowded trawler believed to be carrying over 150 people, mostly Muslim pilgrims, sank after hitting a sandbank in the Muriganga river in the eastern state of West Bengal on Saturday.
Twenty-one more bodies were found since Sunday evening, taking the death toll to 41, the PTI news agency reported.
"The toll is likely to rise as there is a possibility of recovering more bodies," administration official Narayan Swarup Nigam told the agency.
Between 50 to 100 people were still missing but hopes of finding survivors had faded, local news channels reported.
Fifty people who either swam to safety or were rescued by local boatmen received medical treatment at local hospitals.
Police said the exact number of passengers aboard the trawler could not be determined but survivors estimated more than 150. The vessel had a capacity for about 60 passengers, police said.
Divers from the Indian navy and Coast Guard and a 40-member team of the state disaster management force began operations Monday morning.
A helicopter, speedboats and hovercraft explored the waters around the scene of the accident.
The passengers were mainly farmers and fishermen returning from a Muslim shrine.
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