No Trace Of ‘Missing’ Odisha Navy Officer Even After A Month; Check What Berhampur SP Has To Say

Berhampur: Mystery continues to shroud the sudden disappearance of a young officer of the Indian Navy from Odisha, Saurabh Kumar Patra.

He had been missing since January 19.

“He had availed around 20-25 days of leave and was supposed to fly to Kochi after his holidays. His family members dropped him at Berhampur railway station, but he did not take the flight from Visakhapatnam for Kochi,” Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M informed on Friday.

The SP further stated that subsequent probe and CCTV footage verification revealed that he disembarked from the train at Icchapuram railway station and the took an autorickshaw from there. “Two missing person’s complaints have been filed, one with Town Police and the other with Railways GRS. He also did not carry his personal belongings, including a tablet,” he said, adding that further probe is on and hopefully they will be able to locate him soon.

The 25-year-old navy officer, a resident of Gate Bazaar area in Berhampur, was at home on leave since December 28 and was to join his duty as an acting leading communicator at INS Garuda. The authorities of Kochi Naval Base also issued a warrant again him for unauthorised leave earlier this month, which the SP had received.

It is also being alleged that Saurabh, who joined the Indian Navy in 2019, provided wrong information about his family while applying for promotion.

Notably, Saurabh’s uncle Amulya Jena lodged a complaint with Berhampur Town police on January 21 after his mobile phone was switched off. The family apprehended that the navy officer might have been kidnapped.