In an unfortunate incident, a 33-year-old Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) officer, who was leading a patrol along the India-China Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, was killed after falling into a deep gorge.
The ITBP braveheart Assistant Commandant Tikam Singh Negi died in the line of duty in the Ladakh sector of the LAC on April 2.
"ITBP salutes the braveheart AC (Assistant Commandant/GD (General Duty) Tikam Singh Negi, 24th Battalion ITBP who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty in Ladakh on April 2, 2023," the ITBP posted on its official Twitter handle.
The officer was posted at this frontier since 2021.
The decorated officer was "exceptionally motivated" towards duty. He was a good mountaineer and was awarded the ‘sword of honour’ in 2014, that is given to the best cadet during training, officials said.
Negi was leading a long range patrol of his troops when he fell into the gorge while negotiating the treacherous LAC terrain in Ladakh, they said.
The mortal remains of the officer were consigned to flames at his home town in Uttarakhand on Tuesday.
The Northern Command of the Army also paid tributes to the officer, saying it "stands with the bereaved family in this hour of grief."
The Northern Command of the Army said in a Twitter post, "#LtGenUpendraDwivedi, #ArmyCdrNC and all ranks of #NorthernCommand express condolences on the sad demise of AC/GD Tikam Singh Negi, #ITBP, who made supreme sacrifice in the line of duty in Ladakh. #IndianArmy stands firm with the bereaved family in this hour of grief."
The ITBP has a personnel strength of 90,000 and was raised in the aftermath of the 1962 Chinese aggression. The Force secures the 3,488-km-long LAC on India’s eastern flank.
The ITBP is working along with the Army at this frontier even as the militaries of India and China are engaged in a standoff at Ladakh since May 2020.