India boat bodies found

Boats are often overcrowded in India

Rescuers in India have recovered the bodies of at least 12 people after two boats capsized in the eastern state of Jharkhand, officials say.

The disaster happened on Monday when the vessels collided in high winds and rain near the Rukka dam about 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the state capital, Ranchi.

Four people are believed to have swum ashore to safety. It is still unclear how many people were on the two boats.

Divers have joined rescuers whose efforts to find survivors have been hampered by bad weather.

One man who swam ashore has told of his despair when his four-year-old son slipped from his grasp. His wife is also missing.

Deputy police commissioner Jaishanker Tiwary said passengers came from seven or eight neighbouring villages.

Monsoon

It is currently the monsoon season in eastern India and it has been raining in the area of the dam since Saturday.

Boats in India are often overloaded, and traffic on the Rukka is believed to have been especially busy because of a Hindu festival, correspondents say.

But travelling by boat is the only means of transport available to villagers cut off by the floods in the monsoon season.

The district administration has offered to pay about $200 (10,000 rupees) to the relatives of those who drowned.