Dehra Dun, July 7
A student of Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, has died following alleged violation of rules by a rafting company run by Narayan Singh Rana, a former BJP minister in the interim government of Uttarakhand, and father of ace shooter Jaspal Rana.
Vikas Mittal, who was studying in the fourth year, was drowned in Yamuna when he fell from his raft near Nainbagh in Tehri Garhwal district on Sunday.
Vikas, from Kaithal in Haryana, had come with his five friends for rafting. Questions are being raised about gross violation of the safety norms by the rafting company and the permission granted by the administration for rafting during monsoon season.
Under rules, rafting remains suspended from June onwards because of excessive water in rivers due to melting of glaciers and monsoon rain.
Chandan Singh Chauhan, police station officer, Chamba, said that six rafters fell into turbulent water when their raft capsized. “The two guides rescued five of them while a boulder probably hit Vikas Mittals' head. He was dead by the time he was taken out of the water,” he said.
Kailash Tolia, sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), Dhanaulti, supervised the rescue operations.
The body was handed over to Vikas’ family after a post-mortem.
Narayan Singh Rana told this correspondent that “two of my guides had brought the boys from Delhi who insisted on rafting”.
Asked if he thought it was safe to conduct rafting expeditions during peak monsoon season specially when the government suspends such activity in Ganga till October, Rana said, “The tourism department gives the permission. It is up to them take a decision.”
The family of the boy had not filed any complaint, station officer Chauhan said.
