📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Kg1729
Religion
13 Children Drowned in Raghopur Boat Accident: Tradition of River Immersion Explained
✍️ Amar Ujala · Bihar
🗓 15 Oct 2026, 11:16 AM
👁 13
A boat capsized in Raghopur, Vaishali district, killing 13 children; local families followed a long‑standing custom of immersing the bodies in the Ganga instead of cremation.
A small passenger boat sank in the Ganga River near Raghopur in Bihar's Vaishali district, resulting in the deaths of 13 children. Rescue teams recovered the bodies from the water and handed them over to the families for final rites.
In the Bhagtaan Tola locality, several of the affected families chose to follow a generational practice of immersing the deceased in the river rather than performing a traditional cremation or burial. The custom, described by elders as a centuries‑old ritual, holds that the flowing waters of the Ganga can purify the soul and aid its passage to the afterlife.
Local officials noted that while the practice is uncommon in most parts of the state, it is respected as a cultural tradition within the community. Police and health workers are monitoring the site to ensure that the immersion does not pose any public‑health concerns.
The incident has sparked a broader discussion about funeral customs in rural Bihar, with some religious scholars urging adherence to standard Hindu rites, while others defend the community’s right to observe its ancestral customs.
In the Bhagtaan Tola locality, several of the affected families chose to follow a generational practice of immersing the deceased in the river rather than performing a traditional cremation or burial. The custom, described by elders as a centuries‑old ritual, holds that the flowing waters of the Ganga can purify the soul and aid its passage to the afterlife.
Local officials noted that while the practice is uncommon in most parts of the state, it is respected as a cultural tradition within the community. Police and health workers are monitoring the site to ensure that the immersion does not pose any public‑health concerns.
The incident has sparked a broader discussion about funeral customs in rural Bihar, with some religious scholars urging adherence to standard Hindu rites, while others defend the community’s right to observe its ancestral customs.