The mortal remains of four soldiers, recovered from the site near Rohtang Pass in Lahaul and Spiti district where an Indian Air Force (IAF) plane had crashed, were flown to Chandimandir in Panchkula district near Chandigarh yesterday. A team of mountaineers had found the bodies during the ongoing Chandra Bhaga Mountain Expedition being held from September 25 to October 10.
Deputy Commissioner, Lahaul and Spiti, Rahul Kumar said that the remains were in a decomposed state, thus no autopsy was conducted. This successful recovery of the bodies was a significant development in one of India’s longest-running search operations, dating back to the crash of an IAF AN-12 aircraft with 102 passengers on board on February 7, 1968.
The Dogra Scouts of the Indian Army in collaboration with the Tranga Mountain Rescue led the search efforts. In previous expeditions conducted in 2005, 2006, 2013 and 2019, only five bodies were recovered, but the recent mission took the total to eight, including three fully intact bodies.
Malkhan Singh, sepoy Narayan Singh and craftsman Thomas Charan were among the identified soldiers. Malkhan Singh was identified through a voucher found in his pocket, while Narayan Singh’s identity was confirmed via his paybook. Narayan hailed from Kolpadi village in Tharali of Chamoli district of Uttarakhand while Charan was from Elanthoor, Kerala.