9 of 11 Georgia gas poisoning victims from Punjab
Of the 11 Indians who lost their lives due to suspected carbon monoxide poisoning in Georgia, nine are from Punjab.
Sources said some of the victims were identified from their documents in Georgia while other were identified after their parents approached the media with their details.
Were employees of Indian restaurant
- All 11 victims were employed at an Indian restaurant at Gudauri, a ski resort
- The Indian Embassy working closely with the local authorities to complete formalities
- After the approval of the authorities, the bodies to be sent to India
The remaining two were also from north India, but their identities had not yet been ascertained by the authorities, the sources said.
Among the dead are Sameer Kumar from Khanna, Gagandeep Singh from Moga, Amarinder Kaur from Rajpura, Maninder Kaur from Mansa, Ravinder Singh and his wife Gurwinder Kaur from Sunam, Ravinder Kala from Jalandhar, Sandeep from Tarn Taran and Varinder Singh from Samana. All 11 victims were employees of an Indian restaurant, ‘Haveli’, located at Gudauri, a skiing and paragliding destination in the Caucasus mountains on the Georgia-Russia border.
The Indian Embassy in Georgia was working closely with the local authorities to complete the formalities, including post-mortem, said the sources. After the approval from the Georgian authorities, the bodies would be brought to India, they said. There is only one weekly flight between India and Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia.
In a statement, the interior ministry of Georgia said the deaths occurred in the resting area on the second floor of the Indian restaurant on December 14. “No signs of injuries or signs of violence were detected. According to the preliminary investigation, a power generator was placed in an indoor area near the bedrooms,” it said. The statement said 12 persons, including a citizen of Georgia, died in the incident.
