One among 9 Pawan Hans chopper crash victims belongs to Odisha’s Malkangiri
Victim got married in June 2021, wife three months pregnant
BY A ISWAR RAO
BHUBANESWAR, JUNE 30 : A pall of gloom descended on Wednesday in Odisha’s Malkangiri as news spread that one of the nine victims in Tuesday’s Pawan Hans chopper crash in Arabian Sea near Mumbai belonged to the town.
The deceased was identified as geologist Satyambada Patra.
Satyambada got married in June 2021 and his wife is three months pregnant.
“We are all shattered following Satyambada’s sad demise. He was a nice human being. Besides, he was a brilliant student all through his career. This year, he was preparing for civil services examinations. The people of the locality will miss him,” said one of his relatives.
The tragic incident occurred during the emergency landing of the chopper in the Arabian Sea water near the Sagar Kiran oil-rig off Mumbai High Fields, around 175 km off the country’s commercial capital.
The chopper was carrying at least seven passengers and two pilots. The rescue was carried out by ONGC vessel Malviya-16 and a boat from the oil rig Sagar Kiran, while the Indian Coast Guard also deployed its aerial and marine assets in the efforts.
Four of the nine pulled out were unconscious and airlifted in a Navy chopper to a hospital in Mumbai, where they were declared dead.
ONGC has ordered a probe into the incident.
Notably, ONGC has several rigs and installations in the Arabian Sea that are used to produce oil and gas from reservoirs lying below the seabed.
