Former army chief General Nirmal Chander Vij paying tributes to Lt Gen Prem Nath Hoon (retd) at the cremation ground in Sector 25, Chandigarh, on Tuesday. Keshav Singh/HTchandigarh@hindustantimes.com
Chandigarh : Family, veterans and representatives of the armed forces on Tuesday bid farewell to Lieutenant General Prem Nath Hoon (retd), the hero of Operation Meghdoot of 1984, who was cremated at the electric crematorium in Sector 25 with full military honours.
Lt Gen Hoon died of a brain haemorrhage on Monday at the Command Hospital in Chandimandir. He was 90.
The last rites were performed by his son Roony Hoon. Mourners included politicians, former army chiefs, academics, officers of the Western Command, family and friends.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, in a tweet condoled the passing away of the veteran: “Extremely saddened by the passing away of Lt Gen PN Hoon (retd). He served India with utmost dedication and contributed significantly towards making our nation stronger and more secure. My thoughts are with his family and friends in this sad hour. Om Shanti.(sic).”
In his message, defence minister Rajnath Singh said he was deeply pained by the demise of the General.
“He was an outstanding army officer who had a remarkable career as a military commander. His stellar contribution to India’s military history will always be remembered,” he said.
Brigadier Balbir Singh (retd), his long-time associate, said the moment was deeply painful for him.
“We were together in the military academy in the late 1940s and our association began from there. I met him three weeks back. I would have stayed with him longer had I known it was our last meeting,” Brig Balbir said.
Politicians, including Haryana assembly speaker and MLA Gian Chand Gupta, Chandigarh BJP president Sanjay Tandon, commander-in-chief of Western Command Lt Gen RP Singh, former army chiefs General NC Vij and General VP Malik visited the Hoon family to pay homage.
Lt Gen Hoon served in the Indian Army for four decades and retired as the chief of the Western Command in 1987.
As commander of the Srinagar-based 15 Corps, he led from the front during Operation Meghdoot launched in April 1984 to secure control of the Siachen Glacier.