Lakhimpur Kheri is the largest district in Uttar Pradesh, on the border with Nepal. It was part of the Indian National revolution of 1857 when most British party were shot down and the British fled from Sitapur, escaped to Nepal and till Oct 1858 did not make attempt to regain control. The next 24 hours are critical for Koppad, being treated at the Army's Research and Referral Hospital in Delhi, according to a report in a newssite. Dogged determination of over 150 soldiers helped by two canines, Dot and Misha, besides earth penetrating radars and special ice cutting equipment helped rescue Lance Naik Hanumanthappa Koppad, who was buried under tonnes of ice at 19,500 feet on the Siachen Glacier.
As the Nation remembers on
February 3, an 800X400ft ice wall broke
off and covered an army post in northern glacier in Siachen, the world's
highest battlefield. The rescue teams
had the arduous task of breaking through 25-30 ft of blue ice, which is harder
than concrete, and had to chip it away inch by inch, army officials said
explaining the rescue operation. In an unprecedented move, PM Sri Narendra Modi
set aside his security protocol and
visited Koppad at Research and Referral
Hospital. This morning, Army Chief General Dalbir Singh reached the army
hospital to take stock of Hanumanthappa's condition. "Karnataka is very
proud of Lance Naik Hanumanthappa. We hope he comes out strong," Atul
Kumar, Resident Commissioner of Karnataka, said.
The soldier faced a tough
hurdle in his road to recovery. The mighty warrior is severely dehydrated,
hypothermic, hypoxic, hypoglycemic and in shock. He has been diagnosed with
pneumonia, his liver and kidney are dysfunctional, he continues to have low
blood pressure, the report said. Fortunately, he's not suffered from frost bite
or bone injuries, the report quoted a medical bulletin issued by the hospital
as saying.
A report in PTI said
Koppad chose difficult areas over "peace" postings and fought for 10
years in conflict areas. "The brave solider displayed a high degree of
initiative and has served 10 years in difficult and challenging areas out of 13
years of total service," a senior army officer said. "The 33-year-old
has served in Mahore (J&K) from 2003 to 2006 where he was actively involved
in counterinsurgency operations. He again volunteered to serve with 54
Rashtriya Rifles (Madras) in the state from 2008 to 2010 where he displayed
indomitable courage and gallantry in fighting terrorism during his
tenure," he said. He was serving in the super high altitude areas of
Siachen Glacier from August 2015 and was chosen for deployment in one of the
highest posts at an altitude of 19,600 feet since December 2015, encountering
temperature well below minus 40 degrees C and winds up to 100 km per hour, the
officer said.
As an individual,
Hanumanthappa is said to be an ever
smiling man who shares a cordial relationship with peers and subordinates.
Sadly, nine other soldiers lost their lives in the
avalanche. In a move that should hit headlines of all newspapers [currently on
Indian Express & Huffington Post] ~
a woman in Uttar Pradesh has volunteered
to donate a kidney to save the life of Lance Naik Hanumanthappa Koppad, even as
the nation continued to pray for his recovery.
IANS reports
that Nidhi Pandey, a housewife from Lakhimpur Kheri, 167-km from Lucknow,
contacted the helpline of a local news channel offering to donate a kidney to
Koppad. Pandey was deeply moved by Hanumanthappa's story ~ and we are deeply
moved by this exemplary gesture.
Long live such souls … Jai
Jawan.
With reverence – S.Sampathkumar
10th Feb 2016
