A family of decorated soldiers bids farewell to slain major

BENGALURU: Unaffected by the silence at the Yelahanka Air Force Station, two-and-a-half-year-old Naina waved cheerfully at the men in uniform who had lined up to receive the body of her father Major Akshay Girish Kumar, 31, who died fighting terrorists at Nagrota on Tuesday. The major’s family showed a composure that reflected their strength, even as the child’s innocence forced small smiles on the faces of the service men.
In the hangar were Akshay’s parents Wing Commander (retd) Girish Kumar and Meghna Girish, his wife Sangeetha Ravindran, and a host of air force personnel and men from the Madras Engineer Group and Centre (MEG).NCC cadets from Rashtriya Military School, Akshay’s alma mater, were also present.
The plane landed around 11.30am, and as the casket was carried from the tarmac to the hanger, the family kept its eyes locked on the table that was to hold it. They showed no emotion, but a strong sense of loss was palpable in their body language.
Sangeetha was in Nagrota when what became Akshay’s last operation began. She arrived in Bengaluru ahead of the aircraft carrying his remains. A couple of tears rolled down her cheeks when the casket was transferred to a vehicle for the journey to their house, but she quickly composed herself. A few metres away, her mother-in-law showed little Naina something on a mobile phone to keep the restless child quiet.
As the family left the air force station, Naina was still smiling and she waved at the solemn men in uniform, who waved back slowly, unable to resist her cheer yet touched by the innocence that kept her from understanding her loss.