DHAKA (REUTERS) - A ferry in Bangladesh carrying around 40 passengers capsized after colliding with a sand-laden vessel on Wednesday (Sept 9), leaving at least 11 people dead and many more missing, officials said.

The dead include five children and three women, said Mr Kazi Mohammad Abdur Rahman, the district administrator of Netrokona, where the accident happened on the Gumai river 160km north of the capital Dhaka.

"So far, 11 bodies have been recovered," he said.

"The rescue operation for those missing is ongoing."

Hundreds of people die each year in ferry accidents in Bangladesh, a low-lying country that has extensive inland waterways but lax safety standards.