SRINAGAR: The nation paid tribute to the sacrifices of 10 Paramilitary Army Capt Pawan Kumar, Head Constable Bhola Prasad Singh and Constable R.K. Raina who were martyred during the ongoing encounter in Pampore in Jammu and Kashmir, as a wreath laying ceremony was held for the bravehearts here on Sunday.
‘No father can be prouder’, said 10 Para Army Captain Pawan Kumar’s father Rajbir Singh. “I had one child, I gave him to the Army and to the nation. No father can be prouder,” Singh said.
“Captain Pawan was martyred while he was leading his troops from the front. Indian Army officers always lead from the front as is evident from the operations here in Kashmir in the recent past. Captain Pawan was a young officer, son of a school teacher. He was a dynamic officer and a true commando. In fact, just last month, he was injured in an encounter in Pulwama just five days after his 23rd birthday. He was advised to go on sick leave, but he declined,” Lieutenant General Satish Kumar Dua told ANI.
Twenty-two-year-old Kumar succumbed to his injuries today after he led a troop that stormed the EDI Complex last night, in which two to three militants are believed to be holed up. The captain, who hails from Jind, Haryana, is from 10 Parachute Regiment and has been part of two successful operations in which three terrorists were killed.
Meanwhile, the encounter in Pampore is underway with the security forces making all attempts to neutralise the group of terrorists, who have taken refuge inside an Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI) building here.
According to CRPF PRO Bhavesh Kumar, the attack seems to be pre-planned given the amount of ammunition being used by the terrorists.
“We are trying to neutralise the militants right now and seeing the pattern of firing, it seems like there are two to four terrorists inside the building. It is a huge building with four floors and several rooms. Most of our injured are stable and out of danger but one of our boys lost his eye,” Kumar told the media here.
He added that the counter operations were being conducted in a manner to ensure that there was no collateral damage to life or property.