Rescuers recovered three bodies. Hopes of finding the missing alive were fading as darkness approached, he said.

The villagers were traveling to a nearby village in Banda district of Uttar Pradesh state to celebrate a Hindu festival. The area is about 250 kilometers (160 miles) southwest of Lucknow, the state capital.

Heavy rains have caused floods and landslides in northern India during the June-September monsoon season.

Boating accidents are common in the country, where many vessels are overcrowded and have inadequate safety equipment.

In September 2020, 12 people drowned when a sightseeing boat capsized on the swollen Godavari River in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. In May 2018, 30 people died when a boat carrying local people capsized in the same region.