Nagrota attack: Martyr Major was set to return to his hometown Bengaluru on Thursday

Bengaluru/Delhi: As India reeled from the shock of yet another terror attack on an army camp in J&K, where seven bravehearts died, one of them, Major Akshay Girish Kumar was set to return on Thursday to visit his parent's house in his home town Bengaluru. Instead, his shocked and grieving family will return to the city with his body on Thursday.

At Major Akshay's parents home in Jade Gardens, one of his friends said " he will arrive home only in a casket," even as his other friends who had gathered at their fallen friend's home in a gated community in Yelahanka, stood in silence.

Major Akshay's father Girish, mother Meghana and his sister Neha had left for Nagrota on Tuesday night within hours of the family receiving communication from the Indian Army that Major Akshay had been martyred in the Nagrota terror attack.

Martyred Major was from city’s Jain College
“We are proud of our friend and neighbour who laid his life down for the country. What has happened to him is unfortunate...nobody should meet this kind of an end," said Ravi Seetharaman, General Manager of Jade Garden, and a neighbour of the Major Akshay's father, Girish Kumar.

Major Akshay who was inducted to the 51 Engineer Regiment of Bengal Sappers in 2003 received a call from the National Defence Academy (NDA) where he had applied while he was still pursuing his post graduation at Jain College in Bengaluru. He immediately discontinued the course and reported for training in Pune after which he was posted in Kashmir and Chandigarh followed by Nagrota in Jammu.

People pay their last respects to Major Akshay Girish Kumar outside his residence, in Bengaluru on Wednesday. (Photo: R. Samuel)

Major Akshay Girsh had married his childhood friend Sangeetha around five years ago, and the couple had a 2-1/2 year old daughter Naina. While they were in Bengaluru, Akshay had purchased a flat in Koramangala, but after he was posted up North, he moved there with his family, renting out the apartment. Akshay came from a long line of army men. His father retired as a Wing Commander while his grandfather retired as a Colonel from the Indian Army.

Social media was abuzz with condolences and praise for the slain soldier from all over the country with his friends, relatives and family members having his pictures and photographs of him and his family members celebrating Diwali recently.

At the Nagrota military base, there was wreath laying ceremony that was attended by his wife, daughter, his parents and his sister on Wednesday. The mortal remains of Akshay Girish Kumar is expected to arrive in the city on Thursday, at around 11.30 am at the Air Force station Yelanhaka in a service aircraft. Military honours will be done there after which his body will be moved to his parent's home where it will be kept for public display for paying respects and homage by relatives, friends and colleagues. He is expected to be cremated at Hebbal crematorium later in the day.

Kabul’s heart bleeds for India
In a huge boost to India a day after the horrific Nagrota terror attack, Afghanistan on Wednesday---at a joint Indo-Afghan press conference in the Capital---snubbed Pakistan and joined India in identifying terror emanating from Pakistan as the "greatest threat" to regional peace and stability.

India and Afghanistan said that setting up an effective counter-terror framework to deal with the challenge will be a major focus at the two-day Heart of Asia (HoA) conference beginning Saturday.