Nation salutes martyr Colonel Santosh Mahadik

He was killed during a gunfight with militants in Srinagar

The nation on Wednesday paid tribute to Colonel Santosh Mahadik, who was martyred yesterday in a fierce gun battle with terrorists who had infiltrated from across the border and were hiding in the Manigah forests of Kupwara District in North Kashmir.

In the wreath laying ceremony for the slain Colonel Santosh Mahadik here, all the officers and the jawans of the 41 RR paid their tributes to him.

Colonel Santosh Mahadik, who was the Commanding Officer (CO) of the 41 Rashtriya Rifles, breathed his last on Tuesday at the base hospital after being critically injured in the encounter.

The officer had made the supreme sacrifice while leading his troops in the operation from the front. Even as their CO breathed his last the troops, as an ode to his bravery and commitment, continued with the operation to hunt down while reinforcements were rushed in.

The Colonel was an officer of the elite 21 Para Special Forces and had volunteered to command a Rashtriya Rifles battalion in operations. He had already been decorated with a Sena Medal for gallantry exhibited in counter terrorist operations in the North east as part of Operation Rhino.

A tough and fearless soldier, he was known to be relentless in pursuit of terrorists and had many successful operations to his credit.