Kathua Terror Attack: The five Army personnel killed in a terrorist attack on a patrolling party in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir, hail from Uttarakhand. The attack took place on Monday when a group of heavily armed terrorists ambushed a patrolling party in the Badnota area of Kathua.

A massive search operation was launched to nab the terrorists behind the ambush, in which five people were also injured.

The soldiers who lost their lives in the line of duty were identified as Rifleman Anuj Negi from Pauri, Nayab Subedar Anand Singh Rawat from Rudraprayag, Naik Vinod Singh from Tehri, Kamal Singh from Pauri, and Adarsh Negi from Tehri.

Rifleman Anuj Negi, one of the killed soldiers, hails from Rikhnikhal village in Pauri Garhwal. He was the only son in the family. Negi got married just eight months ago. His father is an employee in the forest department, working on daily wages.

Another Army personnel Adarsh Negi (26) was a farmer’s son. He was the youngest of the three siblings. He had left his college studies midway to fulfil his dream of serving the country through the army. Negi hails from Thati Dagar village in Uttarakhand’s Tehri district. He joined the Garhwal Rifles in 2018. He is survived by his father, one brother, and one sister at home. His cousin also lost his life two months ago.

Dalbir Singh Negi said his son studied up to class 12 at Government Inter College in Piplidhar and then joined Garhwal University to do a BSc. He left his studies to join the Garhwal Rifles, he said. “I spoke to him last on July 7 over the phone. He had come home in February and returned on March 26 to join duty,” Dalbir Singh Negi said, fighting back his tears, as quoted by news agency PTI.

Nayab Subedar Anand Singh Rawat, who was also one of the killed soldiers, hails from Kanda Bhardar village in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district. He joined the army in 2001. Rawat is survived by his wife, two sons, and an elderly mother.

Another soldier who lost his life in the attack was Havildar Kamal Singh, who hails from Naudanu village in Uttarakhand’s Pauri Garhwal district. He was 35 years old and was the only son in the family. He had spoken to his wife before going on patrol. Singh is survived by his wife, two daughters, mother, grandmother, and three sisters.

Naik Vinod Singh Bhandari, one of the killed Army personnel, lived in Jakhnidhar village in Uttarakhand’s Tehri district. Bhandari, 29, was the only brother of three sisters in the house. He is survived by his wife, a 4-year-old son, and a 3-month-old daughter at home.