BERHAMPUR: The family members of Shivasis Nayak, an engineer from Odisha, on Thursday breathed a sigh of relief following his safe return to India after remaining stranded for few weeks on board a Coronavirus-hit cruise ship off Japan coast. Nayak, who hails from Berhampur, along with 118 Indians and five foreigners were on Thursday evacuated from the ship ‘Diamond Princess’ and brought to the Delhi from Tokyo in a special Air India flight.
As the news of evacuation of the Indians reached here, the family members of Shivasis erupted in joy. The parents of the young engineer visited the Shirdi Sai temple in the locality and offered prayers. “He was stranded in the ship since February 4. For the last 22 days, he survived on fruits. Now we are very happy that he returned to India safely. I would like to thank God, the Indian government and the media persons for safe return of my son,” Lingaraj Nayak, father of Shivasis told reporters here.
“My son has been tested negative for Coronavirus. As he returned to India, he will again undergo test,” he added.
Echoing similar sentiment, mother of Shivasis said, “We were spending sleepless nights since my son was trapped.”
