Naval ship explosion: Sparse information on missing sailors irks kin

MUMBAI: Atul Sharma was two days short of his 24th birthday when multiple explosions rocked INS Sindhurakshak, in which he and 17 others are feared dead. "When he was deployed in the submarine, Atul called me to say that he was on patrol and wouldn't come back," said Hem Raj Sharma, Atul's father.
"We didn't think it would become a reality,'' said Sharma, a teacher in Amritsar's Hindu Sabha Secondary school.Atul, who joined the Navy two years ago, was deployed in a ship and had been transferred to the submarine only a few days back.
Though inconsolable, the family is angry at the Navy for the sparse information shared about the rescue attempts. "Three of my relatives rushed to Mumbai after been informed of the explosion, but the Navy is not sharing any information. The Navy has taken my son, they should send him home safe,'' Sharma said.
Atul's mother Suman and sister Rashmi are constantly glued to the television channels for information.
The despair of the relatives at the sparse information shared by the Navy is equally palpable at the residences of three missing sailors: T Rajesh, Dasari Prasad and Badapalli Seetaram from Andhra Pradesh.
In fact, three days after the incident, Captain (Retd) Dr P Satya Prasad, zilla sainik welfare officer, Visakhapatnam, tried to track down the relatives of the missing sailors. Mistaking him to be a naval officer, a crowd at Prasad's residence in Simhachalam nearly attacked his vehicle. Prasad was eventually saved by the timely intervention of some ex-servicemen who recognized him and pacified the angry mob.
There was despair in Poilapool, a village in Assam's Cachar district, after news reached that sailor Timothy Sinha was among those missing.
"It was Timothy's dream to be a naval officer. He joined the Indian Navy three years ago. We are shocked at the news," said Kolabati Singh, Timothy's neighbour. Timothy's parents and his two sisters have rushed to Mumbai.
Durgapur resident Malay Haldar, an electrical mechanic-radio-II on the submarine, joined the Navy only a year ago and was excited about his first duty in a submarine, say friends. Malay's parents left for Mumbai on Thursday evening after the Navy released the list of casualties. His father works with Durgapur Projects Ltd. Subhajit Mukherjee, a childhood friend of Malay, said he left Durgapur on July 29 after a leave of 26 days. "We knew him as a brave, polite boy since childhood, who was very fond of sports," said Subhajit.
(With inputs from Yudhvir Rana, Siva G & Jatinder Kaur Tur & Debajyoti Chakraborty)