Nachiketa had been posted to Adampur air base recently and had left for Srinagar a little over a week ago. He was involved in the air strikes in Kargil and was taken hostage by Pakistan when he ejected after his MiG-27 developed engine trouble yesterday.

However, there has been no official word from the Government yet. And the family is fending for itself. ``Actually, we came to know when our relative who had heard it on the news called last night. Ever since, the phone has been ringing with everyone wanting to know the details. But we ourselves know so little. The Government has not contacted us so far and we are just keeping tabs on news bulletins. Maybe they too are not sure. Do youknow anything?,'' asks his mother Lakshmi.

Were they aware about the hostilities in Kargil before Nachiketa left the airbase last week? ``Yes, we knew about the situation there. We were prepared to wait as it wasn't known when he would return.''

There are no regrets, however, over her son's joining the Air Force. ``We are aware of the risks involved. It is for the country that he is fighting'', she said.

Nachiketa's parents had joined him at Adampur early this month as they wanted to spend time with their son. Nachiketa's father, K R K Shastri, had retired recently from the Central Water Commission in Delhi and the couple thought they would spend a few months with their son before moving into their house in Hyderabad, where they intend to settle down. They also have two daughters. ``We have not spoken to him since he left as our phone was not working. But he called his sister on the night of May 26, to tell her that he was in Srinagar and was fine,'' she recalls.

A graduate of the National DefenceAcademy, Nachiketa was commissioned in the Air Force in 1990. Friends describe him as a man with a passion for flying. ``He has got pictures of MiG-27 all over the house and can't stop talking about them. He was really looking forward to this operation,'' one of them said.