Mumbai: Maharashtra IFS officer Vilas
Bardekar, who was released after being held captive allegedly
by Bodo militants for 83 days, today said that the place where
he was kept "looked like a terrorist camp".
The abductors were in the age group of 20 to 26 years,
he told reporters after meeting Maharashtra Chief Minister
Ashok Chavan and Forest Minister Patangrao Kadam.
"They (my abductors) used to tell me often that I will
surely return home," Bardekar said.
"From their behaviour, I never thought that they would
do any such thing," Bardekar told reporters when asked if he
feared being killed by the militants.
"I missed my daughter the most during those 83 days in
captivity."
Asked if there was truth in the reports that a huge
ransom was paid to ensure his release, Bardekar said, "I am
not aware of any such thing."
"Maharashtra Government did a lot to facilitate my
release," the officer said.
Bardekar, a 1984 batch IFS (Indian Forest Service)
officer, was abducted on May 12 from a forest in Arunachal`s
West Kameng district while he was carrying out a study on
butterfly species there.
The officer, Joint-Director of Social Forestry in
Maharastra, was released yesterday at Dhekiajuli in Assam.
PTI
