South 24 Parganas (West Bengal) [India], July 14 (ANI): Following the tragic capsize of a fishing trawler in the Bay of Bengal, West Bengal Minister of State for Fisheries, Rajesh Mahata, expressed deep sorrow over the incident and stated that DNA testing would be conducted to identify the recovered bodies before handing them over to their families.
Speaking to reporters on the tragedy, Rajesh Mahata said, “The incident that happened is very sad. After receiving the news, I went to the scene. The Chief Minister has instructed me to look into the matter seriously.”
The Minister further informed that coordination with neighboring state authorities is underway and search operations are active for the remaining missing crew members.
“We informed the Odisha government about this. DNA tests will be needed to identify the body. The body will be handed over to the family after the test. The remaining six fishermen are missing and a search is underway for them,” Mahata added.
Meanwhile, the bodies of nine missing fishermen were recovered from a sunken fishing trawler in the Bay of Bengal following an extensive search operation, Ramnagar MLA Dr. Chandrashekhar Mondal said.
The fishing trawler, named ‘Jai Maa Kali’, had set out for the sea on July 2. While other fishermen remained in contact with the vessel until July 5, all communication was lost after 12 PM on July 6, after which the trawler went missing.
Chandrashekhar Mondal, MLA from the Ramnagar Assembly constituency, stated that intensive search efforts were launched across various state departments under the direct directives of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.
“Yesterday, during a search operation using a drone, the sunken trawler was recovered. The bodies of nine fishermen were recovered from inside the trawler,” Mondal said, adding that the bodies are currently not in a condition to be identified visually.
The legislator further confirmed that scientific testing will be deployed to ascertain the identities of the deceased before handing them over to their families.
“A post-mortem will be conducted on the bodies, and after the DNA test, the bodies will be handed over to the families,” Mondal stated.
Meanwhile, President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Vice President CP Radhakrishnan on Monday condoled the loss of lives in the Bengal boat tragedy.
Prime Minister announced that an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000. (ANI)
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