1968 IAF plane crash: More than 56 years after the tragic crash of an Indian Air Force (IAF) AN-12 aircraft over the Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh, the mortal remains of four more victims have been recovered, marking a significant success in one of India's longest-running search operations. According to the Army officials, the mortal remains were recovered by a joint team from the Dogra Scouts of the Indian Army and Tiranga Mountain Rescue.
The twin-engine AN-12 turboprop transport aircraft, carrying 102 people, had gone missing on February 7, 1968, while en route from Chandigarh to Leh. The aircraft was caught in bad weather and tragically crashed over the Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh.
"In an extraordinary development, the ongoing search and rescue mission to recover the remains of personnel from the AN-12 aircraft, which crashed on Rohtang Pass in 1968, has achieved significant breakthroughs," said an official. For decades, the wreckage and remains of the victims remained lost in the icy terrain.
Five bodies of victims were recovered till 2019
It was only in 2003 when mountaineers from the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering discovered the wreckage, which led to multiple search expeditions over the years by the Indian Army, especially the Dogra Scouts. The Dogra Scouts have spearheaded search missions in 2005, 2006, 2013, and 2019.
Due to the harsh conditions and challenging terrain of the crash site, only five bodies were recovered till 2019, officials said. The Chandra Bhaga Mountain Expedition has now recovered four more bodies, bringing renewed hope to the families of the deceased and the nation, they said.
Whose bodies have been recovered?
As per the officials, the remains of three victims have been identified as Malkhan Singh, Sepoy Narayan Singh, and Craftsman Thomas Charan. The identity of the fourth body has not yet been conclusively identified, although details regarding the next of kin were found.
Charan hailed from Elanthoor, Pathanamthitta district in Kerala. His next of kin, his mother Eleama, has been informed of the recovery. Malkhan Singh's identity was confirmed with the help of documents obtained from official records while Sepoy Singh, who worked in the Army Medical Corps, was identified through official documents. Singh hailed from the village of Kolpadi, Chamoli Tehsil in Garhwal, Uttarakhand, the officials said.
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