JAISALMER: A motorcycle racer from Kochi, who had come to take part in the India Baja rally, lost his way in the Jaisalmer desert during a practice run and died, possibly from dehydration or thirst, according to authorities.The ill-fated rallyist, 34-year-old Asbak Mon, had come to participate in the twoday event which will be flagged off on Saturday. The scrutiny of competitors was held on Friday, despite the tragedy. The winner here gets a free entry to the famous Dakar Rally According to officials, Asbak lost his way on Thursday afternoon. The body was found around 200km from Jaisalmer at Shahgarh Bulj area of the desert after many hours of search on Friday. Police have kept the body in the mortuary and have started an investigation into the incident. The deceased’s family has been informed.While confirming the incident, district SP Jagdish Chandra Sharma said the native of Kochi was residing in Bengaluru. “Asbak lost his way during the trial run on Thursday,” Sharma said. The police began search operations immediately after receiving information that a rider was lost in the desert.Asbak’s body found after five hours of search: CopDeputy SP Gopal Lal Verma said Asbak, along with other competitors, went to Shahgarh Bulj area via Sam. He lost his way while others returned after the trial run.Verma said the organisers had searched for Asbak throughout Thursday night and reported the matter to the police on Friday. His body was found after five hours of search.“His motorcycle was lying and the water bottle was empty. Prima facie the death seems to be due to dehydration or thirst, but the actual reason will be known after post-mortem. Family members have been informed and the post-mortem will be done after they arrive,” he further said.Vice-president Raj Kapoor of Northern Motorsports, the organisers of the vent, confirmed the incident and said Asbak was among the 132 participants from various places.The two-day competition of two-wheelers and four-wheelers stretches over 650km.This is considered to be an extremely tough competition and the winner also gets an entry into the Merzouga Rally in Morocco

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