UTTARKASHI: A 22-year-old Army jawan from Jammu died while an officer sustained critical injuries after a landslide hit an Army unit out on patrol in Uttarkashi district on Tuesday.
According to sources, the Army unit was patrolling the area between the Nelong Valley and Bhairav Ghati region when a huge mass of debris suddenly fell from the mountain. While most of the personnel in the patrol unit were not impacted, Sukhjinder Singh (22), a resident of Jammu's Suchetgarh village, was hit by the falling debris. He died on the spot. An Army officer, also part of the patrol unit, suffered grievous injuries in the incident.
Soon after the landslide, the Army launched a rescue operation and airlifted Sukhjinder's body and the injured officer, whose identity was not revealed, to an Army hospital in Uttarkashi's Harsil region. The injured officer was later referred to the Doon-based Army hospital for further treatment. Simultaneously, the body of the soldier was sent to Uttarkashi district hospital for postmortem. "No civilian casualties have been reported due to the landslide," said Abhishek Ruhela, district magistrate, Uttarkashi.