Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande offers deepest condolences to kin of 9 soldiers

Army Chief General Manoj Pande on Sunday expressed grief over the death of 9 soldiers, including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) in a road accident in Leh on Saturday, and offered his condolences to the bereaved families, officials said.

A post on the Indian Army official handle on X, formerly Twitter, read, "General Manoj Pande #COAS and All Ranks of #IndianArmy express profound grief on the loss of nine #Bravehearts in a tragic and unfortunate road accident in #Ladakh and extend deepest condolences to the bereaved families."

President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, too, condoled the loss of lives in the accident.

The army truck that the soldiers were travelling in skidded off a road and plunged into a deep gorge in the Leh district of Ladakh on Saturday.

President Murmu said she was "deeply anguished" by the loss of lives, adding that "the nation owes a great debt of gratitude to these soldiers for their selfless sacrifice".

"Deeply anguished to learn that a road accident in Leh led to the loss of lives of Indian Army personnel. I convey my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. May God give them the strength to bear this tragedy. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured. The nation owes a great debt of gratitude to these soldiers for their selfless sacrifice," read a post from the President's office on X.

Vice President Jagdeep Dhakhar also extended condolences to the bereaved families while praying for a speedy recovery of the injured personnel.

According to officials, the accident occurred around 6.30 pm on Saturday.

"The troops were moving from Karu garrison to Kyari near Leh. The ALS vehicle, which was moving as part of a convoy from Leh to Nyoma, skidded into the valley at approximately 5:45-6:00 PM, 7 Km short of Kiari. There were 10 personnel traveling in the vehicle, of which nine died and one got injured. The injured personnel has been shifted to a hospital," an Army official said on Saturday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also condoled the loss of lives in the Ladakh accident, saying their rich service to the nation will always be remembered.

Taking to social media platform 'X', PM Modi posted, "Pained by the mishap near Leh in which we lost personnel of the Indian Army. Their rich service to the nation will always be remembered. Condolences to the bereaved families. May those who are injured recover at the earliest.