A sudden accident occurred during a military exercise at Daulat Beg Oldi near the LAC in Ladakh. During the exercise of crossing the river by boarding a tank, the tank sank at midnight due to the rising water level in the river.
Five soldiers including a JCO were martyred in this incident. At around 1 o'clock in the night, when the soldiers were sitting in the pond and practicing crossing the river, the water level of the river suddenly increased. Due to it being night, the soldiers did not know that the water level was rising. The pond got submerged due to the rising water. Although one soldier was successfully rescued, 5 soldiers including a JCO were martyred. The tank whose practice is going on is the T-72 tank which has been named 'Ajay' in India. India had bought it from Russia. It is learned that at the time of the incident, 5 passengers were sitting in the tank instead of 3. Therefore, the problem of carrying capacity may arise.
River crossing exercise with tanks turned into a disaster
The river crossing exercise was going on with tanks in Daulat Beg Oldi. This time an accident happened. Many T-72 type tanks were present at the site of the incident. The army soldiers were practicing crossing the river with tanks together. At around 1 o'clock in the night, when five-six soldiers were practicing crossing the river by staying in the tank, the water level of the river suddenly increased.
Martyr:
The deceased include (1) IRS MRK Reddy
2) DFR Bhupendra Negi (3) LD Akdum Tayyabam
4) Havildar A. Khan (6255 FD Workshop) (5) Cfn Nagaraj P. (LRW).
Rescue failed:
An army spokesperson said that during the midnight of June 28, 2024, the water level in the Shyok river near Saser Brangsa in eastern Ladakh suddenly rose when military exercises were going on. In which the army tank got stuck. The rescue team immediately reached there but the flow of water in the river was very fast due to which the rescue operation could not be successful. The tank and its crew were submerged in water. The Indian Army has expressed grief over the martyrdom of five soldiers.
Defense Minister expressed condolences:
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has expressed grief over the martyrdom of five soldiers in the accident. He said that we will not forget the commendable service of the brave soldiers.