Search and rescue operations by the naval team and fast interceptor crafts were continuing
A patrol boat of the Indian Navy and fire force on a search operation on the Vembanad Lake in Kochi on Friday for Vishnu Unni, the missing sailor. (Photo: DC/File)
kochi: A sailor working in the Cochin Naval Base, the headquarters of the Southern Naval Command, sacrificed his life while rescuing a mother and child, who jumped into the Vembanad lake from the Venduruthy bridge on Friday.
The sailor, Vishnu Unni, 24, managed to put both the women and child into the boat owned by the Cochin Shipyard Ltd, which had reached the spot, but he went missing in the deep waters. Search and rescue operations by the naval team and fast interceptor crafts were continuing, said an official statement by the Navy.
The woman identified as Sangeetha Bineesh, 35, from Cheranellur was admitted to Ernakulam General Hospital but her six-month-old child named Krishna Veni died.
According to a Navy spokesman, Unni showed exceptional courage by jumping into the waters to rescue the woman and the child as he was passing by the bridge around 2 p.m.
Attached with INS Sharada, Unni acted with total disregard for his own safety, the official said. Unni, a bachelor, belonged to Palakakd district and his parents were on their way to Kochi, he added. “We are holding back the family address as a mark of respect for the privacy of the family,” he said.
Sangeetha, wife of Bineesh, admitted to the intensive care unit of the hospital, was in a critical condition, doctors in the hospital said. According to Harbour police, the woman tried to commit suicide due to depression after giving birth to her second child. A suicide note written by her has not mentioned any names.
“The note said she was undergoing depression and hence decided to commit suicide,” a police official said. She will be questioned only after she recovers well. Her husband, Bineesh of Chadnyangdu house in Kunnumpuram, is working as a painter.
Unofficial sources said the woman had attempted to commit suicide two months ago at Cherai beach area but was saved by some alert people.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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