Ladakh: Indian Army has managed to recover the mortal remains of a soldier 38 years after he had gone missing in Siachen in an avalanche back in 1984. "Lance Naik (Late) Chander Shekhar who was missing since 29 May 1984 while deployed at Glacier due to an Avalanche," Northern Command, Indian Army said on Monday.
"Late Lance Naik Chander Shekhar was identified with the help of the identification disk bearing his Army number which was entangled along with the mortal remains; further details were recovered from official Army records," the Northern Command added in the statement.
"Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, Army Cdr NC & all ranks salute LNk (Late) Chander Shekhar who made the supreme sacrifice while being deployed for Operation Meghdoot at Gyongla Glacier in 1984; mortal remains will be handed over to the family shortly," the statement read.
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The deceased soldier's wife Shanti Devi was informed about the recovery by the officials from the army’s 19 Kumaon Regiment on August 14, reports said. The family is expected to get the remains on August 16. The final rites of Chandra Shekhar will be performed at Haldwani in Uttarakhand in the presence of his wife and two daughters. Besides the family, numerous other veterans from his unit and relatives are also set to bid the martyr adieu.
Operation Meghdhoot seized Pakistan’s Operation Ababeel to occupy almost all the dominating heights from 16,000 to 22,000-feet in the Siachen region in May 1984. Chandra Shekhar, who joined the Kumaon Regiment in 1971, was part of a team that was given the task of capturing Point 5965, an important feature that the Pakistanis were eyeing.
During the operation, his team was hit by an avalanche in which 18 soldiers died on May 29, 1984. The bodies of 14 soldiers were found, while others remained missing.
