Lagatar24 Desk
Gangtok, Dec 23: In a tragic incident,16 Indian Army jawans were killed and four others injured when their vehicle skidded off the road and fell into a gorge at a remote location in North Sikkim near the India-China border on Friday.
According to a senior police officer, the injured have been airlifted to an Army hospital in North Bengal.
16 Army personnel have lost their lives, four injured in a road accident involving an Army truck at Zema, North Sikkim. The accident happened when the vehicle skidded down a steep slope while negotiating a sharp turn: Indian Army pic.twitter.com/qkulDm99Gp
— ANI (@ANI) December 23, 2022
As per information, the mishap occurred at around 8 a.m. at Zema 3, about 15 km away from Lachen, located at a distance of around 130 km from the State capital Gangtok.
The ill-fated vehicle in which the jawans were travelling was part of a three-vehicle convoy that had moved from Chatten in the morning towards Thangu. Enroute at Zema, the vehicle met with an accident.
“A rescue mission was immediately launched, and four injured soldiers have been air evacuated. Unfortunately, three Junior Commissioned Officers and 13 soldiers succumbed to the injuries sustained in the accident,” said the Indian Army.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh condoled the loss of lives in the accident.
Deeply pained by the loss of lives of the Indian Army personnel due to a road accident in North Sikkim.
The nation is deeply grateful for their service and commitment. My condolences to the bereaved families. Praying for the speedy recovery of those who are injured.
— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) December 23, 2022
“Deeply pained by loss of lives of Indian Army personnel due to a road accident in North Sikkim. The nation is deeply grateful for their service & commitment. My condolences to bereaved families; Praying for speedy recovery of those who are injured,” said Rajnath Singh.
