Bhiwani Flight Lt’s kin have no info on rescue ops

Sat Singh

Tribune News Service

Bhiwani, August 12

Dalip Sheoran, father of Flight Lt Deepika Sheoran, awaits anxiously about the news of her daughter and 28 others aboard AN-32 transport aircraft that disappeared over the Bay of Bengal on July 22. For the past 12 days, Sheoran, who works as Xen in the Public Health Department, hasn’t got any updates about the rescue operation.

“There has been no communication from Air Force officials, who initially showed warmth and promised cooperation after the plane went missing, for past 12 days to inform us as what efforts were they making to locate the missing persons,” said Sheoran, adding all they could do at the moment was to pray that all on board must be safe and would return home alive.

“The life has come at a crossroads for us. In the absence of any communication from the IAF, we are hoping that some miracle would save our daughter, though chances are quite dim,” he said.

Deepika’s mother Premlata Sheoran said defence forces’ personnel had assured them of making best efforts. Parents whose children had been missing for such a long time should be kept in loop about the daily development. “We attend every call on our mobile phone with a hope that it must be containing the message about Deepika. How could responsible forces leave us in the lurch whose only child had gone missing for past 20 days,” she asked.

The parents also questioned the role of media that has allegedly gone blank on the issue where lives of 20 persons were at stake. They said they were mature enough to understand the possibility of survival under such critical circumstances but knowing about the operation updates was their due right.