The lives of 16 civilians of the Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir, who were trapped in the heavy snowfall, were saved by the timely action of the Army.
The civilians were trapped in the Sinthantop area of the Kishtwar district, at over 12,000 feet height, due to unseasonal snowfall on Thursday afternoon.
"On April 21, 2022, at around 3 pm, information was received from civil administration about 16 civilians having stranded on NH 244 somewhere near Sinthan Pass amidst heavy snowfall", Jammu-based defence spokesman person Col Devender Anand said.
A rescue team of Indian Army personnel from Sinthan Maidan moved to rescue the civilians. The team walked for around 15 kilometers on NH 244 during continuous snowfall and zero visibility conditions and reached the civilians near Sinthan pass at around 6:15 pm.
Thereafter, brought them down to Sinthan Maidan where they were provided with the medicine, food, and shelter. The prompt action of troops of the Indian Army in the rescue operation saved precious lives.
"Army's timely action saved our lives"
Mohammad Ashraf, a native of Kishtwar said that it was all due to the timely action of the Army that the lives of 16 civilians were saved.
"I along with six others was trapped due to heavy snowfall at Sinthantop. We were on our way to Anantnag from Kishtwar", he said, adding, "As our mobile phone was working we approached the civil administration for help".
The civil administration of Kishtwar immediately informed the local unit of the Army about the trapping of some civilians.
Two groups of civilians were trapped in Sinthantop. One group of nine persons was on its way from Anantnag to Kishtwar while another group of seven was going from Kishtwar to Anantnag.
Indian Army starts Motor Driving Course at Dool
Indian Army on Thursday launched Motor Driving Course for the local youth of the Dool area under Operation Sadbhavana, which was flagged off by Brigadier Pranab Misra, Commander Headquarters 9 Sector Rashtriya Rifles, at Kishtwar Ground.
The aim of the driving course is to up-skill the youth and make them eligible to seek different employment opportunities in development projects undergoing in the Chenab region.
On completion of motor driving training, the candidates will be provided with a permanent driving license in liaison with RTO Kishtwar. Majority of the youth selected for training hail from the Dool area.
During the flag-off ceremony, Brigadier Pranab Misra, Commander Headquarters 9 Sector Rashtriya Rifles distributed uniforms and Learner's Driving License among the trainees and encouraged them to take up self-employment by availing themselves of government schemes MUMKIN, etc.
Braving inclement weather conditions, #IndianArmy soldiers walked for 15 Km during continuous snowfall & zero visibility and succesfully rescued 16 civilians stranded amid heavy snowfall from Sinthan Pass of dist Kishtwar on 21 Apr 2022.
— PRO Defence Jammu (@prodefencejammu) April 21, 2022
Saving #precious lives. @PMOIndia @adgpi pic.twitter.com/0yhk2zmRiH
