Khanduri joins family to mourn Gajendra’s death
SNS & PTI
DEHRADUN, Nov. 30: Paying tribute to NSG hawaldar Gajendra Singh, chief minister Maj. Gen. (retd.) BC Khanduri announced Rs 5 lakh compensation for the family of the slain soldier who was cremated at his native village Ganeshpur on Saturday. He said the state government will also render monetary help for the education of Singh's children.
The chief minister said the sons of Uttarakhand had put their lives at sake for the motherland several times in the past. It is a matter of pride for the state, he said, adding that the nation would always remember the sacrifice of Gajendra Singh. He had died during the operations at the Jewish Centre, Nariman House in Mumbai.
The body of the martyr was brought to Ganeshpur on Saturday. His wife Vineeta and two siblings Gaurav and Priya had already arrived from Delhi. The body was cremated here with full military honours.
The funeral pyre was lit by Singh's son Gaurav Bisht amid a three-gun salute by a unit of the Gorkha Rifles. Thousands of people gathered at the village to pay homage to the martyr.
Singh was posted in Delhi as a NSG Commando. He was selected for NSG just after one year's service in the Army. He left for Mumbai on the night of 26 November, never to return.
Meanwhile recognising the sacrifice of not only Gajendra but other soldiers as well the Patanjali Yogpeeth of Baba Ramdev in Haridwar announced Rs 5 lakh for the families of each slain soldier. In a letter to the DG NSG, DGP Maharashtra and GOC of western command, the general secretary of the Peeth Acharya Balkrishan has requested a list of soldiers who lost their lives while battling the terrorists in Mumbai.