Hijacked ship crew's family fights government apathy

NO HELPING HAND: Seem, wife of second officer of the abducted ship, says there is no help from either the government or the shipping company.

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Patna: The news of the hijack of MV Stolt Valor has come as a bolt from the blue for the family of Santosh Kumar, second officer of the ship.

Santosh's family says it is not getting much support from either the government or the shipping company.

"The government must do something for the common people. If there is an incident involving a cricketer or a film star the government is quick to take action but sits quietly when the common people are involved," Seema, wife of abducted mariner Santosh, says.

It is a distressed call from an anxious wife and a mother-to-be. For the last 15 days, Seema is having sleepless nights.

Her husband is the second officer on the ill-fated MV Stolt Valor, which has been hijacked by pirates near Somalia.

Seema says the crew members are suffering.

"Many people in the ship have fallen ill. The medicine stock has run out and food and water is also not adequate," Seema says.

After the ship was abducted, Santosh managed to keep in touch with his family and the Patna branch of the fleet management company through a satellite phone for a few days.

But for the last four days, the satellite phone has stopped working. Adding to the misery of the family, the fleet management company has shut its shop.

The Helpless family now wants the government to come to its rescue.

"If a foreign tourist faces any problem in India, the entire government machinery helps him. But now 18 Indians, who earn and also pay their taxes, are in trouble but the government is not taking any action," Kameshwar Singh, Santosh's father-in-law, says.

While there's a bleak hope of help from the government, the wait for this mother-to-be seems never ending.