ROHTAK/CHANDIGARH:Major Satish Dahiya of the 30 Rashtriya Rifles was cremated with full state honour on Wednesday at his native village Banihari in Mahendragarh district. He was among the four soldiers killed in two separate encounters in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday night.
A pall of gloom descended in his village when the family heard news of his death on Tuesday night.
“Meri do saal ki beti ne uska pita de diya desh ko..bas isse zada aur nai hai dene ko..(My twoyear-old daughter has given her father in nation’s service…we don’t have anything left to give),” said his wife Sujata.
She had received her Valentine’s Day gift sent by Major Dahiya via courier after the news of his death on February 14. “February 17 was our wedding anniversary. He had sent me a card, cake and flowers. He wrote I love you Pooja (my another name), you are my inspiration. Since morning he was telling me that I will receive a surprise..I did after receiving call that he was no more.”
Major Dahiya was the only son of his parents and was commissioned in 2009.
The Army said he was a gallantry award winner and had been part of several operations. He laid down his life while leading an operation in Handwara, Jammu and Kashmir, wherein three militants were also gunned down.
The mortal remains of Major Dahiya reached Narnaul at around 6 pm on Wednesday in an army chopper.
He was then taken to his native village and was cremated with full state honours.
Major Dahiya completed his schooling from Uttar Pradesh and pursued higher studies from Rajasthan University. He is survived by his parents, wife Sujata and a two-year-old daughter Priyasha.
His uncle Bhoop Singh, also a retired sepoy, said he loved playing with his daughter and had joined duty on January 6, after completing a 20-day holiday with his family.
KHATTAR, ABHIMANYU MOURN MAJ OR ’S DEATH
Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday expressed grief over the demise of Major Satish Dahiya.
He also mourned the death of three other soldiers who were killed in another encounter at Hajin in Bandipora district, the same day.
In a condolence message Khattar said the brave soldiers were always ready to sacrifice their lives to safeguard the nation’s honour. Paying tributes to Major Dahiya, Haryana finance minister Captain Abhimanyu tweeted: “Salute to Major Satish Dahiya, who made supreme sacrifice for the motherland at Handwara, JK.”
‘Ravi planned to come home on Feb 18 for daughter’s admission’
JAMMU : Amid a pall of gloom, a swarm of people including family members, relatives and friends bid adieu to rifleman Ravi Kumar at his native village, Tabela Meen Sarkar in Sarore area of Samba district, on Wednesday.
Ravi Kumar, 33, was among the three soldiers who were killed in an encounter with terrorists at Hajin in Bandipora district of Kashmir on Tuesday.
The same day, in another encounter in Handwara, an army major was killed, taking the toll of slain soldiers in a single day to four.
Kumar is survived by his wife Esha Devi, his three-year-old daughter Rusani Ratta, father Rattan Lal and younger brother Kavi Kumar, an employee in the judicial services.
Rattan Lal reportedly told media that “Modi sarkar ko kuch kade kadam uthane chahiye, nahi to humare jawan aise hi jate rahenge. Har doosre ghar mein matam pasra hua hai (Modi government needs to take some strict steps, otherwise we will keep losing our soldiers. Death seems to be stalking every other house).”
He also asked New Delhi to take some “tough decisions” against Pakistan. “I am proud of my son because he has sacrificed his life for the nation but the government needs to take some affective steps,” he added.
Lal recalled how, in 2003, Ravi Kumar had joined the army without informing him.
“He told me that he wanted to serve the nation.”
“Ravi was planning on coming home on February 18 for admission of his daughter Rusani and to attend a family function,” a local resident told Hindustan Times.
Ravi Kumar was posted in 31 Rashtriya Rifles a year ago