Bhubaneswar: A boatman reportedly went missing after he accidently fell into Chilika lake in Odisha while carrying tourists on a fun trip today afternoon.

The missing boatman has been identified as Bikram Jali (55), a resident Balabhadra village near Satapada, sources said.

The incident took place when Jali carried at least eight tourists, including three children and two women, from neighbouring West Bengal into the deep waters of Chilika lake from Satapada in Puri district for dolphin sighting at around 2 pm in the afternoon.

“Jali had turned off the motor of the boat near an island inside the brackish water lake to facilitate dolphin sighting for the tourists. He fell off the boat and went missing in the lake while trying to restart the motor for their return journey,” said a source.

After receiving an emergency call from the stranded tourists, the police along with Fire Brigade personnel and local boat operators launched a rescue operation.

The team rescued the stranded tourists and brought them to the shore. However, they could not trace the missing boatman, sources said.

“A six member team of the Fire Brigade is still searching for the missing boatman,” said Ashok Gachhayat, an official of Satapada police outpost.

Sources, meanwhile, claimed that the boatman was heavily drunk while carrying the tourists on the fun trip.