Hopes of rescuing trapped Indian soldiers from a forward post located at an altitude of 19,600 feet in Northern Siachen glacier faded on Thursday as specialised teams of the Army and the Air Force failed to rescue any survivors from the world’s highest battlefield more than 24 hours after it was hit by a massive avalanche in eastern ladakh region.
Ten soldiers of the Madras Regiment including one Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) were present in the Army post in the Northern Glacier when a km-high and 500-metre wide ice wall fell on the post in the wee hours of Wednesday. All 10 soldiers were feared dead as chances of surviving the adverse weather conditions were bleak.
Despite facing adverse weather conditions in the glaciated area, where minimum temperature hovers around minus 42 degrees Celcius in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day, the Army with active support of the Air Force continued rescue operations and airlifted specialised equipments, including ice cutters and pneumatic machines to leh to further boost the rescue efforts on the second consecutive day. The rescue teams worked tirelessly to retrieve any survivor buried under the snow but could not achieve much success. Sniffer dogs were also pressed into service to trace the soldiers buried in mounds of snow but of no avail.
Ministry of Defence spokesman based in Udhampur Col SD Goswami in a written statement said, “Chances of finding any survivors are now very remote”. He said braving adverse weather the rescue teams had tried to locate and rescue survivors but in vain.
Northern Command chief lt General DS Hooda also expressed his grief and said, “It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty”. Jammu & Kashmir Governor NN Vohra also expressed shock and grief over the tragic loss of Army personnel.