Body of missing fisherman recovered

The body of a 29-year-old fisherman who had been missing off Kozhikode coast since Sunday was recovered from the sea on Wednesday. The body of Sanalkumar from Madappally in Kozhikode was found floating in the sea by a naval crew of a Seaking helicopter of the Indian Naval Air Squadron (INAS) which undertook search operation.

A Defence spokesman said since the body was observed to be decomposed and bloated, it was decided not to winch it up directly, but instead to guide a fishing vessel 'Thaliyilappan', which was in the vicinity, to the location. The vessel subsequently was able to recover the body, he said.

The naval team launched the search following a request on Tuesday from Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan as well as Kozhikode district collector. The Seaking helicopter was launched by the Southern Naval Command (SNC) from INS Garuda, Kochi at first light on Wednesday, the spokesman said.

The aircraft was flown by Lieutenant Commander Vaibhav Gupta, Lieutenant Commander Himanshu Chaudhary and assisted by flight divers TP Singh and SK Sahani. Coastal Police at Vadakara in Kozhikode said the body was handed over to relatives after post-mortem..