24-year-old soldier cremated with military honours in Charkhi Dadri

The body of 24-year-old Army soldier Amit Sangwan, who died after an Army vehicle fell into a gorge in Jammu and Kashmir, leading to the demise of all three occupants, was cremated with full military honours in his native village of Sarangpur in Charkhi Dadri district on Tuesday.

The mishap occurred on May 4 in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ramban district, when an army vehicle fell into a 600-m gorge. The deceased were identified as Amit Sangwan, Sujit Kumar and Man Bahadur.

The vehicle was part of a convoy traveling from Jammu to Srinagar. The bodies were extricated during a rescue operation by the Army, police, SDRF and local authorities.

According to Charkhi Dadri residents, Amit had joined the Army about a year and a half ago as a driver.

He had studied at the government school in his village, and had graduated with a BCom degree from a college in Bhiwani. He is survived by his mother, Krishna Devi; grandfather Azad Singh, who is a retired Army personnel; grandmother Ompati; and Seema, his elder sister.

His father had died some time ago. Area residents said the family was planning to marry Amit off, and had selected a match for him just a month ago. The family was planning to hold his wedding in November. A large number of people from different walks of life joined the last journey as the body was taken to the cremation ground for the last rites.

His mother was inconsolable, and his elder sister lit the pyre. Bhiwani-Mahendragarh MP Dharambir Singh; Sunita Devi, wife of Dadri MLA Suneel Sangwan; and local administrative officials were among those present during the last rites.