Pawan Hans Chopper Crash: Two days before birthday, IAS officer cremated in city

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The accident took place barely a month before Kamlesh, a 2010-batch IAS officer of the AGMUT cadre (Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories), was supposed to be transferred to Delhi from Tirap.

“Last time we spoke, I asked him about the local fruits that grow in Tirap and I advised him to eat those,” said Joshi, a retired Subedar-Major of the Indian Army.

At about 3 pm on Thursday, hours before Kamlesh was cremated at the Nigam Bodh cremation ground, the Joshis’ two-bedroom house is full of people.

Officials from the Union home ministry have come to complete the requisite paper work and many of Kamlesh’s batchmates have come to pay their last respects. One of them, IAS officer Prasanna Ramaswamy, said Kamlesh was “everyone’s favourite”. “He had a sound knowledge of every topic. His seniors used to say that since he was the one with a vast knowledge about so many topics, they could learn from him,” he said.

Kamlesh was the “centre of attraction”, said Prasanna, adding that he was a great “storyteller”. “Whenever he narrated a story, even a dull one, he made it interesting. Whenever he spoke, we listened,” he said.

Abhas Kumar, another friend, had known Kamlesh only for four years. “Now, I realise it was a lifetime,” said Kumar, a professor at Delhi University.

Kumar also talked about Kamlesh’s “sound knowledge” on several subjects. “We could talk to him about anything, he would knew about it,” said Kumar.

Kamlesh also seemed to have an unbeatable streak when it came to entrance exams; he had cracked every single one he ever took, and he took quite a few of them.

After graduating with an engineering degree from the Army Intitute of Technology in 2006, he not only cleared the National Defence Academy exams, but also managed to get the second rank. He also cleared the entrance test for the Armed Forces Medical College, but decided not to opt for the course.

After competing his engineering, Kamlesh worked in an MNC for two years before opting for a MBA course at the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT).

“He met Neha Singhla, his future wife, while studying at IIFT. They got married in 2011,” added Kumar.