Gujarat Police Arrests Man Linked to Vadodara Boat Tragedy from Odisha

Bhubaneswar: A Gujarat police team has arrested Gopal Shah in connection with the January 18 Vadodara lake boat capsize incident from Titlagarh in Odisha. At least 12 school students and two teachers were killed in this boat mishap.

According to Gujarat police, Shah was detained in Titlagarh in Odisha and he would be brought to Gujarat on remand for investigation. Gopal Shah is a partner in Kotia Projects, the firm responsible for operating and maintaining the lakefront where the boat tragedy occurred on January 18.

The overloaded boat was carrying students from New Sunrise School who were on a picnic at the lake. This mishap claimed the lives of 12 students and two teachers, while 18 other students and two teachers were rescued.

The Gujarat police have registered a case under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide) of the Indian Penal Code against 19 individuals in relation to the mishap. Kotia Projects, which was contracted by the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) in 2017 to manage the Harni Lake Zone, has come under scrutiny for lapses in maintaining safety standards.

Till now, seven of the 19 people named in the FIR have been arrested. They include four partners of the Kotia project.