Five days on, no trace of missing Indian citizen who fell into Kuala Lumpur sinkhole

Kuala Lumpur, Aug 28 (IANS) The High Commission of India in Kuala Lumpur said on Wednesday that it remains in close contact with the relevant agencies engaged in the search efforts to locate Indian citizen Vijaya Lakshmi Gali who fell into a sinkhole in the Malaysian capital on August 23. 

The Search and Rescue (SAR) teams are methodically deducing newer probable paths and likely locations of the missing Indian national, who hails from Andhra Pradesh, revealed the Indian HC.  

It mentioned that local authorities, apart from police, fire and rescue department, Indah Water Consortium, KL Federal Territories agencies, are now supported by Civil Defence Forces and "specialised scientific teams" with sophisticated equipment involved in the search. 

"After flushing through portions of drain system, search is being augmented with specialised techniques including high pressure water jets to remove obstacles, remote cameras and ground penetrating radars to map inaccessible areas. The High Commission is in close contact with the relevant agencies engaged in the search efforts as the search has entered its fifth day," the Indian High Commission posted on X, adding that its officers are also in touch with the family members to extend continued support.

According to the local agencies, the 45-year-old woman from Chittoor district's Animiganipalle village fell into an 8-metre deep sinkhole at around 8.22 a.m. on August 23 after the pavement she was walking on caved in suddenly in the Dang Wangi area on Friday. 

It was reported that while her husband and son somehow managed to save themselves from drowning, the woman was swept into the underground sewer.

The Indian High Commission has also, in coordination with the police and Malaysian immigration authorities, extended the tourist visas of husband and son of the missing Indian citizen to enable their stay in Malaysia as the search process is still underway. 

On Monday, India's High Commissioner to Malaysia B N Reddy met the family members of the missing Indian citizen to appraise them about the ongoing engagement at ministerial and operational level to expedite the search efforts. He also assured the family about institutional support in all matters.  

Malaysia's Federal Territories Minister Zaliha Mustafa, who visited the incident site to review the SAR efforts, continues to monitor the situation and has deployed specialised and qualified teams in search efforts while assuring all possible support. 

According to Reddy, the Mayor of Kuala Lumpur is also supervising the search efforts personally.

--IANS

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