Slain CRPF officer cremated in native village

CRPF deputy commandant Vikas Kumar, who died in Chhattisgarh following an IED explosion, was cremated with full state honours at his native village in Muzaffarnagar district.

Muzaffarnagar: CRPF deputy commandant Vikas Kumar, who died in Chhattisgarh following an IED explosion, was cremated with full state honours at his native village in Muzaffarnagar district on Tuesday.

Kumar was cremated at Pachenda, his native village, in the district where UP cabinet ministers and senior officials paid tributes to the fallen officer.

UP Cabinet Minister Suresh Rana, State Minister Kapil Dev Aggarwal, BJP MLAs Umesh Malik and Vikram Saini paid homage to the slain CRPF officer. Senior officials, including District Magistrate Selvakumari J and SSP Abishek Yadav, were present as well.

Kumar, belonging to the 208th battalion of CRPF's elite unit CoBRA, received serious injuries on Sunday when an improvised explosive device (IED) planted by Maoists exploded while it was being defused by security personnel in Chhattisgarh's Kistaram. He later died at a private hospital in Raipur.

Earlier on Monday, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had announced ex-gratia compensation of Rs 50 lakh and a government job to Kumar's family member.

PTI Report