Ludhiana: Gagandeep Singh, a youth from the Ghal Kala village in Moga district in Punjab was among the eleven Indian nationals found dead at a restaurant in Georgia's mountain resort of Gudauri. The grieving family is now requesting the government to help bring his body back.
According to Gurmukh Singh, his son left for Georgia four months ago for bread and butter. The family had taken a loan of five lakhs to cover the travel expenses and other requirements. The Indian mission in Tbilisi on Monday confirmed the death of the Indian nationals including Gagandeep Singh. The unfortunate incident has put the family in a state of unending grief. Earlier, Gagandeep also worked for two years in Dubai.
"We are a poor family, we sent Gagandeep out to earn and support our family. Now we appeal to the government to help us to bring Gagandeep's dead body to Punjab so that we can perform his last rites and rituals," said Basant Singh the bereaved grandfather.
Former sarpanch of the village, Simranjit Singh, said that he received information about Gagandeep's death and will be meeting the district collector to make necessary arrangements to bring the dead body home so that the family can perform the last rites. He also appealed for financial assistance for the family.
Meanwhile, police in Georgia have launched a criminal negligence investigation into the incident. The victims, who are believed to have worked at the restaurant, were found in dormitories on the restaurant’s second floor, Georgia’s Interior Ministry said in a statement. Police said that there were no signs of violence at the scene, but that a generator was found running in a closed room near the bedrooms.
While officials have not said what caused the deaths, local media reported that the employees were likely killed by the generators’ fumes. Residents said that electricity was not running in the area at the time of the incident, and the generator had been brought into the building to provide heating.
