Uttarakhand is mourning the loss of five soldiers from the state following a terrorist attack on an Indian Army convoy in Kathua district, Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.
The ambush was carried out by terrorists in the Machedi area of the district, targeting slow-moving army trucks.
The attack resulted in the deaths of five soldiers, including a JCO and an elite para commando, while five others sustained critical injuries.
The slain soldiers were identified as Naib Subedar Anand Singh Rawat (41) from Rudraprayag, Rifleman Anuj Negi (25) and Havildar Kamal Singh Rawat (28) from Pauri Garhwal district, and Rifleman Adarsh Negi (26) and Naik Vinod Singh Bhandari (33) from Tehri Garhwal district. All of the soldiers were part of the Garhwal rifles.
On Tuesday evening, their mortal remains were brought to Dehradun's Jolly Grant Airport, where a wreath-laying ceremony was held with full military honours.
The ceremony was attended by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Haridwar MP and former CM Trivendra Singh Rawat, cabinet ministers Ganesh Joshi and Premchandra Agrawal, General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Uttarakhand sub-area, Major General R Prem Raj, state DGP Abhinav Kumar, and other senior Army officers.
While condemning the attack, Chief Minister Dhami said, "It was a cowardly act. The entire nation and the state stand in solidarity with the grieving families. Their supreme sacrifice won't go to waste.
Those involved in this dastardly act will not be spared, nor those who provided shelter to the terrorists. The government will provide every possible support to the families of the fallen heroes."
An army spokesperson said, "Of the five soldiers who died, the mortal remains of Naik Bhandari were handed over to his family members, who performed his last rites in Dehradun.
"The bodies of the two soldiers from Pauri Garhwal were airlifted to Kotdwar city in a chopper and will be transported to their native villages by road for the final rites."
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