Colonel Narendra Kumar, who contributed greatly to Indian Army’s move into the Siachen Glacier and was fondly known as ‘bull’, died on Thursday, 31 December in Delhi. He was 87-years-old.
Colonel Kumar was born in Rawalpindi in 1933, and led an Army expedition to the Siachen Glacier in April 1984. The Indian Army’s expedition aided the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, to launch Operation Meghdoot, NDTV noted.
In an old interview quoted by NDTV, Kumar had said, “We went on this expedition and that's where we climbed all these high passes. Every time we went, the Pakistanis came and flew over us. And to tease us and make us aware that they knew (of our presence) they used to release coloured smoke there. We were unarmed and we were pretty scared.”
The troupe led by Colonel Kumar eventually went on to acquire Saltoro range, which meant they had essentially occupied Siachen.
Colonel Kumar had skied down all the passes leading to the glacier to establish the world's highest, most unwelcoming battlefield.
He also led expeditions to nine other Himalayan mountain peaks that were above the altitude of 24,000 feet, NDTV reported.
(With inputs from NDTV)
No comments:
Post a Comment