Kanpur: Merchant Navy chief officer Sagar Gupta (30), who was killed in a recent drone attack in Ukraine while serving aboard a ship in the Black Sea, was cremated at Bhairav Ghat in Kanpur on Thursday morning. As the family performed the last rites, they renewed their demand for martyr status for Sagar, Rs 2 crore as compensation and a govt job for his wife. They alleged that none of their requests had been addressed by the govt.His elder brother, Manish Gupta, lit the funeral pyre in the presence of family members and relatives, who gathered to pay their last respects.The family said that since the body was 18 days old and had begun deteriorating, they had no option but to perform the cremation.Sagar’s mortal remains reached his residence in Shastri Nagar, Kanpur, on Wednesday evening. On seeing the coffin, his wife, Shalu, and mother, Ramadevi, were overcome with grief and fainted. The atmosphere at the house was sombre as relatives, friends and local residents gathered for the final farewell.Prominent Samajwadi Party leaders, including Vinay Gupta, Samrat Vikas and councillor Vinod Gupta, were present during the funeral.On Wednesday, Sagar’s niece, Lakshmi, submitted a memorandum to Sadar tehsildar Vinay Kumar Dwivedi, seeking martyr status for Sagar, Rs 2 crore as compensation and a govt job for his wife. The tehsildar assured her that the memorandum would be forwarded to the govt.Sagar was a resident of Shastri Nagar in Kanpur. He was recruited in 2018 through DG Shipping by Avon Navigators Marines Private Limited, based in Thane, Navi Mumbai. At the time of his death, he was serving as Chief Officer in the Merchant Navy. Family members said Sagar had left home on June 13 and travelled to Russia via Turkiye.On July 18, Ukraine carried out two drone attacks on the ship on which Sagar was posted in the Black Sea. After the first attack, Sagar moved the eight crew members on board to safety. He was then attempting to take the ship to a safe zone when the second drone attack took place, killing him.The family was informed about the incident on July 21 by one of Sagar’s friends on the phone. Since then, they had been waiting for his mortal remains to arrive in India.
