Bhubaneswar: In the backdrop of a series of boat mishaps, including Sunday's boat capsize in Hirakud reservoir, the BJP on Monday urged the Centre to set up a National Commission of Inquiry for specific policy on safety norms for water transport.
"We will raise the issue in the Parliament. There have been a series of boat tragedies in different places in the country, including Kerala and Andaman Niccobar, but no safety norm is maintained anywhere," said Chandan Mitra, Rajya Sabha MP and BJP's Odisha in-charge.
Alleging that lives were lost due to the callous attitude of the state government, Mitra said that many accidents could be averted had there been some norms.
Rejecting the administrative probe into the Hirakud tragedy ordered by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the state unit of BJP demanded setting up a judicial commission in order to find the fault in the system.
Speaking about the Hirakud mishap, BJP state president K V Singhdeo said the state government had no information whether the boatman had license or the ferry ghat was auctioned.
"It is responsibility of the Chief Minister's department to ensure that the water transport becomes safe in the state," Singhdeo said.
He said that a probe could not find the actual defaulters as government officials have not taken the boatman to task for operating without a valid license while passengers did not have life jackets.