Nigeria crash: Co-pilot's family in Kol seeks govt help to get body

Jaipur The distraught father of Mahendra Singh Rathore, co-pilot of a plane which crashed in Nigeria, today asked the Union government to step up diplomatic efforts in bringing his son’s body to India at the earliest. Hailing from Bikaner city, 34-year-old Mahendra was the co-pilot of the passenger plane, belonging to Dana Air, which rammed into a residential area in Lagos killing him and over 150 people on board and 40 on the ground on June 3. [caption id=“attachment_334661” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The family of the crashed Nigerian flight’s co-pilot are waiting for his body.”]  [/caption] “We have been informed that the body will be handed over to us after identification through DNA test and it may take another four-five days,” I S Rathore, Mahendra’s father, told PTI. “The government should ask the authorities in Lagos to complete all formalities as early as possible,” he said. “It is a difficult time for us and we are unable to console ourself,” a devastated Rathore said. Mahendra is survived by his wife and a seven-year-old son. The entire family is settled in Kolkata but after the tragedy they are in Bikaner now waiting for the body. The funeral will take place in Bikaner. “My son had promised that he will celebrate his 35th birthday in Bikaner in July but now all is over," said Rathore, general manager of a company in Kolkata. PTI