Odia Engineer Quarantined In Coronavirus-Hit Ship Off Japan Coast Lands In Delhi

OB Bureau

February 27, 2020 6:37 am

Bhubaneswar/New Delhi: Odia software engineer Shibasis Nayak, quarantined onboard the coronavirus-hit ‘Diamond Princess’ cruiseliner for over 20 days, was flown to Delhi from Tokyo in an Air India flight with 118 other Indians and five foreign nationals on Thursday morning.

They had left the ship on Wednesday night.

The engineer is a resident of Pandara Street in Old Berhampur and works in a firm in Gurugram. He had left for Malaysia for a project work along with his colleagues on January 10. After finishing the project, they left for Vietnam where they had boarded the cruise ship.

The vessel, however, was detained at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal at the Japanese port on February 4, and passengers were quarantined, after a person, who had disembarked in Hong Kong on January 25, tested positive for the new virus covid-19.

Taking to Twitter, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar thanked the Japanese authorities for facilitating the evacuation.

On February 19, Shibasis had made a fervent plea to the Union Government to airlift him along with other Indians onboard. “We had e-mailed the Indian Embassy at Tokyo and received a reply. The Embassy people said they are in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs. Still no steps have been taken so far to evacuate Indians who have tested negative for the virus,” Sibasish said in a video chat with his family and friends.

He had tested negative for the deadly virus.

Kalinga Right Forum, a voluntary group, had also shot off a mail to Consulate General of India, Japan, the same day, requesting for immediate evacuation of Shibasis and other Indians on the cruise ship.

Responding to the request, the Indian Embassy in Tokyo said that it had established contact with the Odia engineer through e-mails and WhatsApp phone calls. “Shri Nayak has intimated that while he is very much concerned and worried about the situation onboard, he is presently keeping good health. The Mission has provided him a contact point in case he needs any further assistance,” the email reply read.

“The Embassy is coordinating with Japanese authorities and ship management company for health, safety and welfare of onboard Indian nationals,” it had added.

Of the total 138 Indian nationals onboard Diamond Princess, 16 Indian crew members had tested positive for coronavirus. They are being treated at an onshore medical facilities in Japan and the Embassy of India in Tokyo is continuously following-up on their recovery, said a government statement.