Howrah: A 15-year-old national-level rifle shooter from central Howrah, who was due to appear for national squad trials, has gone missing after leaving home on Rathayatra morning to buy milk and other household items. Police have launched a multi-district search after CCTV footage showed the teenager entering Howrah station and walking towards platforms from where suburban trains to Hooghly districts departed and later also attending a rathyatra at Mahesh.Damayanti Sen, a resident of Umacharan Bhattacharya Lane, was last seen around 10 am on Thursday at platforms 4 and 5 of Howrah station, around 2.5 kms away. She had left home around 9 am, carrying only a small amount of cash and leaving behind her mobile, making it difficult for investigators to track her movements.Indranil Khan, minister of state, dept of sports and youth affairs, has met Dhruvajyoti Sen, her father, and assured him and his kin.Howrah City Police said on Wednesday night that four teams were formed to trace Damayanti and were leaving at night for other states and various districts.A senior Howrah City Police officer said, “A separate investigation is also being carried out by Howrah City Police’s detective department.”Incidentally, the clothes that Damayanti’s father earlier said she was wearing were different from the ones she was spotted wearing on CCTV footage from Howrah Station.The Howrah Government Railway Police and the Detective Department of Howrah City Police are jointly probing the disappearance. Investigators have circulated her photograph to police stations across several districts and are examining CCTV footage from railway stations and other public places to reconstruct her movements.Her parents are also running an online campaign on social media circulating her photographs. Damayanti was wearing a pink outfit with a white dupatta when she left home, according to her family. As the search entered its second day on Friday, her distraught parents appealed to anyone with information about her whereabouts to immediately contact the nearest police station.A senior Howrah City Police officer said preliminary probe suggested that Damayanti may have boarded either an Arambagh or a Bardhaman local train that departed from platforms 4 or 5 shortly after she was seen there.“She was later seen on Thursday afternoon pulling the ropes of the chariot at the Mahesh Rathayatra in Serampore. Since then, there has been no trace of her. We have circulated her photograph and alerted police stations in different districts, but no concrete lead has emerged so far. CCTV footage is being examined and our sources have been activated,” the officer said.Police are also making enquiries at religious places, including the Tarakeswar temple, after family members told investigators that the teenager had a deep interest in spirituality and was somewhat absent-minded by nature. Officers said all possible angles were being explored and there was, at present, no indication of foul play or family discord.Damayanti is a student at Olympian Joydeep Karmakar’s rifle shooting academy and is regarded as one of the state’s promising young 10-metre range shooters. She had attended shooting practice on Wednesday and was scheduled to appear for a state level championship on Thursday.Her father, Dhruvajyoti Sen, said the family was unable to understand what could have prompted her disappearance.“My daughter is equally dedicated to her studies and rifle shooting. She follows a disciplined routine of yoga, meditation, morning walks, studies and shooting practice. Since she had the national squad trials coming up, she had been sleeping early and waking up early over the past few days,” he said.Family members initially believed she had gone for her customary morning walk along the riverfront when she did not return by 9.30 am. They later searched nearby areas and even travelled to Sheoraphuli after receiving information, but found no trace of her.“She had received a silver medal in a state level championship two weeks ago. She has also represented the state in national level and was also slated to appear for national squad trials in Sept. On Thursday, she was slated to represent our academy in another state level championship — the Presidents Cup,” said Karmakar.
