Body of Indian man found under rubble in Turkey

CHENNAI: The body of a Indian man named Vijay Kumar (35) from Uttarakhand was found under rubble in Turkey's Malatya on Saturday.

"Mortal remains of Vijay Kumar, an Indian national missing in Turkiye since Feb 6 earthquake, have been found and identified among the debris of a hotel in Malatya," tweeted Embassy of India, Ankara.

Vijay Kumar is survived by his wife and two young children.

Vijay Kumar Gaud, who hailed from Uttarakhand's Pauri district and was working for a Bengaluru-based company, had gone to Turkiye on an official assignment.

With his face crushed beyond recognition, Gaud was identified with a tattoo of the word ''Om'' on one of his hands, his family said here quoting Indian embassy officials.

Gaud was a resident of Padampur area in Kotdwar in Pauri district. His clothes had been found on Friday.

The Ministry of External Affairs had said on Wednesday that an Indian was missing and 10 others were stuck, but safe in remote regions following the quake.

The number of Indians residing in Turkey was around 3,000, out of which about 1,800 live in and around Istanbul, while 250 were in Ankara and the rest were spread all over the country, according to officials.

The hotel where Gaud was staying collapsed on the morning of February 6 when the 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Turkiye leaving behind a trail of death and destruction.

Turkey's disaster agency on Saturday said nearly 32,000 people from Turkish bodies are working on search and rescue efforts. In addition, there are 8,294 international rescuers.

Officials and medics said 20,937 people had died in Turkey and 3,553 in Syria. The confirmed total now stands at 24,490.