Visakhapatnam: The final rites of marine chief engineer Patnala Suresh were performed at Srinivasa Nagar Industrial area here on Friday. The government whip and local MLA P Ganababu and BJP MLA P Vishnu Kumar Raju attended the funeral and paid floral tributes to the mortal remains of the engineer, who was killed in a US military attack in the Gulf of Oman on June 10.
It may be recalled that the US military attacked oil tanker MT Settebello and killed three Indians. There were 24 crew members onboard the ship. After nine days, his mortal remains reached Vizag on Friday morning. A pall of gloom descended on the area as scores of locals reached the house of Suresh.
On behalf of the state government, Ganababu attended the final rites. The 44-year-old chief engineer’s family members, relatives, friends and local residents attended the final rites. The government whip assured the bereaved family of all possible help from the government.
Suresh’s wife Bhargavi wondered why Indian crew should die in the war between two countries. She demanded that the state government bring her husband’s luggage including certificates and passport. She alleged that the company her husband was working for had not responded properly till date.
Bhargavi said that her husband was the only breadwinner in the family and asked how she could raise her two children Nayan and Jatin now without him. She requested the government to take action against the company which is not responding at all. She appealed to the government to address the concerns of the bereaved families.
Bhargavi asked the PMO what the government would offer to the bereaved families. “I am requesting the Indian government and the US government to address the concerns of the bereaved families. We did not get a proper response from the company too. What kind of benefits will the bereaved families get? He is the only earner in my family. Now, I have to do a job to take care of my sons, who are pursuing 9th standard and sixth standard,” she said.
