T\vo-thirds of the water vessels plying on different river routes across the country do not have registration while many of them are operating without fitness, putting the passengers at great risk, a survey says.

Out of around 20,000 different kinds of

water vessels, only 7,873 have registration, reveals the survey of Save Waterway Implement Movement, a nongovernment organisation, conducted in January this year.

The survey covered around 5,000 passenger carriers and found 2,082 of them unregistered.

The Department of Shipping (DoS) does not have any recent survey on the water vessels, but DoS sources admitted that most of die vessels operating now do not have registration.

They said DoS cannot properly verify the unregistered and unfit launches due

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