One jawan dead, five missing in Kinnaur avalanche

Tribune News Service
Shimla, February 20

One soldier died and five are still missing after heavy snow triggered an avalanche in Kinnaur district’s Namgya on Wednesday.

A jawan was pulled out of the snow and sent to Pooh for medical aid but died there. Rescue operations are currently under way.

"The deceased jawan was identified as Ramesh Kumar (41) of Ghumarpur village in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh," Kinnaur Superintendent of Police (SP) Sakshi Verma told PTI, adding that the jawans belonged to the 7 JAK Rifles unit of the Army.

The tribal districts of Kinnaur and Lahaul & Spiti have been seeing heavy snow these past few days. The Indian Meteorological Department has predicted more snow and heavy rain for the area over the next two days. 

The avalanche occurred at around 11 am near Shipkala on the Sino-India border, PTI quoted Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner Gopal Chand as saying.

Several jawans of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) were also trapped in the avalanche, but they were rescued later, he added

Meanwhile, Army and ITBP are keeping a close watch along the 240 km international boundary with China along Shipkila. With PTI