A merchant navy officer from Jammu and Kashmir has gone missing from his tanker vessel since May 27, three days after leaving an Australian port for Singapore, his family said on Tuesday.
Bikram Singh, 30, second officer in the Japanese merchant navy company M.T. Yayoi Express Product Tanker, left Fremantle port in Australia May 24 for Singapore. "Captain V.K. Jha from the company's office in Mumbai called us on the morning of May 27 and told us that Bikram was missing," Bikram Singh's younger brother Paramjit Singh told IANS on telephone from his village Ramgarh, about 40 km South of Jammu.
Bikram Singh, who hails from a village near Jammu, was on a ship carrying oil and chemicals. "We were told that the ship had just covered about 280 km from Fremantle port and was still in Australian waters when it was found that Bikram was not traceable.
"The company said the Australian coast guards made frantic searches for over 50 hours, but they could not find anything," a worried Paramjit Singh said. He said the company told him that the ship was taken back to the port, where the Australian police conducted a thorough search, but "no clue was found".
Bikram Singh has been a merchant navy officer for over 10 years. He was with this company on a second contract of six months. Paramjit Singh said that according to the company, his brother was on duty till the midnight of May 26. "Then he went to his cabin and drank a cold drink, after which he went up to the bridge and had a chat with an officer. Thereafter, he headed to his cabin," he said.
The Indian man was to report to duty at 8 00 AM. The next day. "We were told that when he did not turn up for duty, he was called repeatedly but there was no response," he said.
"It is not possible to fall from the ship as at night the doors leading to the railings and deck are locked and one needs special permission from the captain to go out in case of emergency," Paramjit Singh said.
He said that the route of the ship was a busy one and the water was "clean and clear". "We were told that there are no sharks in that area. There should be some clue of a person in white uniform if he has fallen into the sea," he said.
Bikram Singh's family said they had asked for a copy of the reports lodged with the Australian coast guards and the police. "But the company is not giving any such document," he said. Bikram Singh's father Ghaar Singh, 51, is shattered. "I request the state and Central governments to help me. I feel completely broken when I see Bikram Singh's wife and three-and-a-half-year-old daughter," he said.
"When the ship is fine, all other crew members are fine, then what has happened to Bikram?" Paramjit Singh asked.
After failing to get any clue, the Australian police allowed the ship to proceed to Singapore. "We have been told that Singapore police will now make further inquiries," he said.
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah, in his message on microblogging site Twitter, has assured the family all possible help.