A 39-year-old woman has been rescued alive nearly four hours after she jumped into the Padma River from a ferry operating on the Paturia-Daulatdia route.
The woman, identified as Mst Layju, wife of Forkan Mia of Ashrafabad Jhauchar of Kamrangirchar in the capital, was rescued from Kabirpur Char in Faridpur Sadar upazila around 10:45pm on Saturday by local fishermen.
She was handed over to her family on Sunday morning after legal formalities.
According to police and ferry authorities, the ferry left Paturia Ferry Ghat for Daulatdia around 7:00pm on Saturday.
When the ferry reached the middle of the Padma River, the burqa-clad woman suddenly jumped into the river from the lower deck.
After being informed, the ferry master alerted officials of the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Corporation (BIWTC) at both Daulatdia and Paturia ferry terminals, as well as the river police.
Members of the Daulatdia and Paturia river police outposts, along with the Fire Service, launched a search operation but failed to locate her until late at night.
Inspector Trinath Saha, in-charge of Daulatdia River Police Outpost, said they recovered the woman's vanity bag with the help of the ferry master and a snack vendor.
Her National Identity Card (NID) and mobile phone found inside the bag enabled police to identify her and contact her family.
Later, around 11:30pm, police were informed that the woman was rescued alive from Kabirpur Char, about 30 kilometres downstream from Daulatdia Ferry Ghat.
Sarwar Hossain, a member of ward No. 3 of North Channel Union Parishad in Faridpur Sadar upazila, said four fishermen spotted the woman clinging to water hyacinths while fishing in the river around 10:45pm and rescued her before informing local authorities.
Sub-Inspector Tapan Nandi of Kotwali River Police Outpost said police reached the spot after receiving the information, completed the necessary legal procedures and handed the woman over to her family around 6:30am on Sunday.
The reason behind the woman jumping into the river could not be known immediately.