A grieving father asks: Why is the govt letting them die?

The body of Subash Chand was brought back to his village in Himachal Pradesh for last rites, Saturday. (Express photo)

The body of Subash Chand was brought back to Parhna da Bassa, a remote village in Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, on Saturday. Chand always dreamed of following the footsteps of his father, who was in the Army.

On Sunday, the father, Piar Singh, was inconsolable, as was the rest of the village. Chand, who was in the Punjab regiment, was one of the soldiers killed in the militant attack in Kashmir. “The last conversation we had over phone was on December 4 evening. It was brief but he sounded okay — perhaps unaware of what was to come. The saddest part is that the situation in Kashmir is still the same. Nothing has changed there. There’s no light at the end of the tunnel,” Singh said.

Blaming the Centre for the incident, he said, “I don’t understand why the government is allowing brave jawans to die like this.”

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Chand was 18 when he joined the Army in 1993. He served in various stations, including Samba near Jammu, and West Bengal. For the past two years, he had been posted in Kashmir after receiving special training in anti-militant operations. Local MLA Vikram Singh Jaryal said he knows Chand’s father well. “I can understand the loss to the family and the nation. This boy had struggled hard to get initial education when his father was in the Army,” he said.

Deputy Commissioner, Chamba, M Sudha Devi said the cremation will be held on Sunday.