Gangasagar Mela: Drone footage helps reunite estranged daughters with mother

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s special emphasis on drone surveillance during the Gangasagar Mela turned out to be fruitful as it reunited two daughters with their mother after they got estranged in the

Gangasagar Mela.

Bishala Naskar (37) of Ashwini Pally in Barasat, North 24-Parganas got estranged from her daughters Bipasha (3) and Ishita (9). After taking the holy dip, Bishala went to the bus stand with her daughters and her aged mother for their return journey from Ganagasagar Mela. Her daughters managed to board the bus bound for Kachuberia but she and her aged mother could not due to the crowd. She began weeping and fainted.

A ham radio operator Saborni Nag Biswas who was on duty at the bus stand took note of it. She managed to resuscitate the mother along with other volunteers.

Locating the bus was an arduous task since Bishala was oblivious of the bus number. Saborni spotted a drone in surveillance of the stand. With the assistance of the police, Harshad Bhanushali, involved in managing the drone, was contacted. The bus was detected while scanning the drone footage. Meanwhile, Saborni, accompanied by a woman police team, left to catch the bus maintaining constant liaison with the drone authorities.

At Chaukfuldubi buffer zone area, the bus was found and the two girls were brought back to the bus stand and handed over to their mother.

“It was a total team effort where technology and human intellect were combined in the best possible manner. However, Saborni’s presence of mind was the key in completing the search operation in such a short time,” said a district

administration official.