LUCKNOW: Twenty-two-year-old Abhishek Nishad from Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria district was among the four Indian sailors killed in a Russian missile strike on a Turkish merchant vessel that came under attack shortly after departing Ukraine’s southern port of Odesa. Ten crew members were killed in the attack.
Abhishek, a resident of Karmel village, had joined the Turkish vessel Golden Loe as an Ordinary Seaman on his first overseas assignment. The ship was carrying cargo from Ukraine to Syria.
His father, Kaushal Nishad, who runs a small cloth shop, said Abhishek had completed Class 12 and was inspired to join the Merchant Navy by his cousin, Jairaj Nishad.
Despite financial hardship, the family borrowed Rs 5.5 lakh to fund his training at an institute in Lucknow, hoping he would secure a better future. “Abhishek left for his first assignment on June 9. I never imagined I was sending my son on a journey from which he would never return. We were all proud of his achievement,” the father said.
Kaushal said the family remained in regular contact with Abhishek. “Our last conversation was on the evening of July 19. He asked about our well-being and said he was settling into his new job,” he recalled.
When the family could not reach him, representatives of the shipping company informed them of his death. The family is now waiting for Abhishek’s mortal remains to be brought home.
Village head Jitendra Bahadur Nishad said Abhishek was among a handful of local youths who had joined the Merchant Navy. “This tragedy has shaken the entire village,” he said.
