The Hindu : National : Clinging on to hope

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 12, 2005

National

National

Clinging on to hope

S. Dorairaj

Tanoy Biswas

CHENNAI: They have left no stone unturned in their six-month-long struggle to find their children who went missing minutes after the tsunami hit Car Nicobar on December 26.

Despite their efforts to get reunited with their children, they have not yet seen light at the end of the tunnel.

But the optimism of Sunit Biswas, a contract worker, who was till recently living near the Car Nicobar Air Force Station, and his wife, Mou Biswas, is boundless. They are sure that their son, Tanoy Biswas (11), and daughter, Nikita Biswas (7), must be in the custody of some good Samaritans in some remote corner of the country.

Nikita Biswas

Ms. Biswas recalls her nightmarish experience, with tear-filled eyes: "On the fateful day, I started running for life along with my children as our area was jolted by [the] quake and [the] tsunami. Like us, several others also ran helter-skelter. Even as we surged forward, I lost track of my dear children. As giant waves began swallowing the area, my husband also left the residence and joined me later. It is from here [that] our Mission Search unfolds..."

The couple has lodged a "missing report" with the Car Nicobar police and also placed advertisements in the print media. They have sought the help of officials of the Andaman and Nicobar administration, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry. They have visited 25 camps in Car Nicobar and Port Blair and the rehabilitation camps at Nagapattinam, Cuddalore and Karaikal in the hope of being reunited with their children.

If anybody has information about the children, they can inform the parents at 24, Health Institute Road, Rabindra Nagar (N) P.O., Dum Dum Cantonment, Kolkata-700 065 or at Tel: 033-25661341.

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