KOLLAM: With the Indian Army planning to bring the body of Lance Naik Sudheesh B to Thiruvananthapuram from Jammu via Delhi by air by Thursday or Friday, the locals, friends and family members of the soldier has made all arrangements to bid a fitting farewell to Sudheesh, who laid down his life in the line of duty at the Siachen Glacier on February 3.
During the moment of wretchedness, the kith and kin of Sudheesh- a resident of Munroethuruthu, here- had pointed their fingers at the Indian Army by alleging that the lives of all the 10 soldiers could have been saved had the rescue operations been carried out on time. “The situation here is inexplicable. The family had earlier been heartbroken after hearing the news that an avalanche had hit the camp site at the northern part of the Siachen Glacier, where Sudheesh was on duty.
“The national media immediately reported that all the 10 soldiers were dead.But then reports surfaced that the rescue teams spotted signs of life under several feet of snow. From that time onwards Sudheesh’s wife as well as his father and mother were in a cheery mood. But at the end of the day there is nothing for us to cheer about. First we cope with our loss, and then there was a glimmer of hope and in the end there is nothing but dejection,” said Jayapalan, brother-in-law of Sudheesh.
According to him it was on Monday that an Army officer from Jammu informed them that the body of Sudheesh had been dugout and also promised that it would be flown to his home as soon as possible.