New Delhi: Braveheart Lance Naik Hanumanthappa Koppad, who was trapped for six days at the Siachen Glacier under 35 ft of ice before being rescued on Monday night, lost his battle for life and passed away at around 11.45 am on Thursday at the Army’s Research and Referral Hospital here.
The end came after he suffered multi-organ failure, including kidney failure. He had slipped into a deeper coma after worsening of the pneumonia that afflicted him along with a “blood-clotting disorder”.
“We tried our level best to fight the death of the brave Siachen warrior but this morning his blood pressure dropped despite our best efforts and he had a cardiac arrest,” Lt. Gen. S.D. Duhan, director of the Army Hospital said.
Soldier is immortal, says Narendra Modi
The fact that Lance Naik Hanumanthappa was found alive even after six days under ice and snow was considered nothing short of a miracle.
The brave soldier breathed his last despite all-out efforts by the nation’s top Army and civil doctors to save him.
In all, 10 soldiers, including Lance Naik Hanumanthappa, of Madras Regiment perished in the avalanche that struck a specific area over 20,000 ft at the glacier on February 3. Lance Naik Hanumanthappa, 33, had served in the 19th battalion of Madras Regiment and hailed from Betadur village in Karnataka’s Dharwad district. He is survived by wife Mahadevi Ashok Bilebal and two-year-old daughter Netra Koppad.
“He leaves us sad and devastated. RIP Lance Naik Hanumanthappa. The soldier in you remains immortal. Proud that martyrs like you served India,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, reflecting the sombre mood in the nation after the brave soldier’s death.
“Really sorry to inform everyone that Lance Naik Hanumanthappa is no more. He breathed his last at 11.45 am,” the Army said earlier Thursday, soon after the soldier passed away.
The braveheart’s mortal remains were kept at Brar Square in Delhi Cantonment where defence minister Manohar Parrikar, the three service chiefs, Congress president
The martyr’s wife, Mahadevi, sat in stoic silence through the sombre proceedings with wails of their two-year-old daughter Netra piercing the silence. Defence ministry officials said his remains would be flown to Karnataka late Thursday night and the cremation will take place in Hubli on Friday before sunset.
