According to the BBC, the Lieutenant Governor of occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha, confirmed the casualties, expressing deep sorrow and calling the incident a national loss.
The Indian Army’s White Knight Corps said in a statement shared on social media platform X that the vehicle was moving along a narrow and difficult mountain road during bad weather when it suddenly skidded off the road and fell into a deep ravine.
Army officials stated that the injured soldiers were airlifted by helicopters to nearby hospitals for medical treatment.
The army added that the accident occurred close to the border area between Kashmir and India’s northern state of Himachal Pradesh. This highway is commonly used to reach military posts located in high-altitude and remote regions.
It is worth noting that security forces have been carrying out a large-scale operation for several days in Kishtwar, a neighboring district of Doda, following reports of militant presence in the area.
A few days earlier, militants had opened fire on a security team during a cordon-and-search operation, killing a member of the police’s Special Operations Group.
The attackers managed to escape by taking advantage of dense forests and rugged mountain passes. However, the army says search operations are still underway to track them down.
