Haveri village plunges into grief, mourns son Naveen's death

Shekharappa Gyanagoudar was barely aware that he was receiving the last call from his son Naveen when the latter called up on Tuesday morning from war-hit Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv. He did not attend the call due to some reasons. However, there was no response from Naveen when Shekarappa called back minutes later.

Naveen was a fourth-year student of Kharkiv National Medical University. He had ventured out to buy groceries when Russia’s shelling claimed his life.

Shekharappa and his family members never anticipated that they would soon receive the tragic news that would shock everyone.

Shekharappa and his wife Vijayalakshmi were highly inconsolable. A large number of villagers who had gathered near the victim’s house at Chalageri were also in tears.

Also read: Two government officials deployed to help Ukraine evacuees: Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai

“My son Shreyans shared the room with Naveen. They cooked food for themselves and stayed for four years happily. We are shocked to hear the news of his death. My son is in a state of shock. We don’t know how to console Naveen’s parents,” Natul Jain, a merchant from Ranebennur told DH.

Jain expressed displeasure that there had been no information about evacuation despite requests to the Central ministers, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, the MLA and the MP.

MP Shivakumar Udasi and MLA Arunkumar Pujar visited Gyanagoudars. They promised measures to bring back mortal remains to India.

Naveen completed SSLC at Adarsha Vidyalaya at Debur in Nanjangud taluk of Mysuru district. He secured 606 out of 625 marks in class 10. He completed PUC at Unity College in Nanjangud securing 92%.

“We are shocked to hear the news,” Ram Mohan, a Kannada lecturer of the college said.

He wanted to pursue MD in India and wanted to specialise in Neurology, he said.

He left for Ukraine four years ago to pursue medical education.

Shekharappa, a BE (mechanical graduate), worked with Oil Indian Limited Company for 10 years in Abu Dhabi. Later, he served at South Indian Paper Mills Limited at Nanjangud for 15 years. He relocated to his native place Chalageri two years ago to manage his two acre ancestral farmland. He bought two acres and carried out areca nut farming on four acres.

Naveen’s brother Harsha is pursuing PhD in the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru.

A change of mind that took his life

"Had Naveen not changed his mind and left Kharkiv towards the border area, probably, he would have been alive."

This was what Vinay Kallihal, who is part of the team that left Kharkiv on Tuesday, told his Vinay's father K B Rudresh.

Rudresh said, "Initially, Naveen had decided to leave the city with other students, after knowing that railway service had commenced from Kharkiv. But later, he changed his mind and asked the others to share details of the situation with him, after going there. We came to know about his death 30 minutes after we left the city, towards the border area."