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Names of sunken submarine missing sailors released

By:  Tupaki Desk   |   16 Aug 2013 6:27 AM GMT
The defence ministry late Thursday released the names of the 18 sailors and officers who were aboard the submarine INS Sindhurakshak that sank here the day before after explosions.

The three officers are Lt. Commanders Nikhilesh Pal, Alok Kumar and R. Venkitaraj.

The sailors are: Sanjeev Kumar, K.C. Upadhyay and Timothy Sinha (all POUW-I), Kewal Singh (LSUC-I), Sunil Kumar (SEA I UW-III), Dasari Prasad (Mech-R 2), Liju Lawrence (LEMP), Rajesh Tootika (LME), Amit K. Singh (STD-I), Atul Sharma and Vikas E. (both SEA-I), Naruttam Deuri (ME-I), Malay Haldar (EMR-II), Vishnu V. (RO-II) and Seetaram Badapalli (LS RP-I).

Of the 18, eight were married.

The Indian Navy is continuing round-the-clock efforts to ascertain the status of these sailors who were trapped when the tragedy struck the submarine following explosions and fire.

Late Wednesday, a team of navy divers succeeded in entering the sunken submarine but the trapped personnel were neither sighted nor rescued, a defence ministry statement said.

The divers' efforts were hampered by poor visibility inside the submarine filled with water, restricted spaces and displacement of most equipment from their original location.

Heavy duty pumps have been deployed to pump out sea water.

The cause of the accident is still not clear.