How Jammu villagers rushed to help 20 Army soldiers stranded in deep snow on Republic Day eve

• Villagers trekked 15 km in snow to rescue 20+ stranded soldiers in Doda.
• Heavy snowfall trapped soldiers at Morcha Top during anti-terror operation
• BRO rescued 60 people at Chatergala Top in Doda district.

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Villagers from the remote Gundna area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district walked nearly 15 kilometres through deep snow to rescue over 20 Army personnel stranded in the mountains at an altitude of around 11,000 feet on the eve of Republic Day.

The rescue took place after heavy snowfall left the soldiers stuck at Morcha Top, a high mountain ridge near the border of Doda and Kishtwar districts. Snow measuring nearly five to six feet had covered the region, making movement extremely difficult, The Indian Express reported.

According to the report, the Army personnel were part of an ongoing anti-terror search operation when they became stranded on January 23 due to worsening weather conditions. The troops had been deployed to Morcha Top under Operation Trashi-1, which has been underway in the dense forest areas for nearly two weeks.

Security forces had intensified search operations after an Army havildar from the Special Forces, Gajendra Singh, was killed and seven other soldiers were injured during an encounter with terrorists in the Singhpora area of Chhatru on January 18. The deployment at Morcha Top was aimed at stopping terrorists from entering Doda district from nearby areas.

After receiving a message from the stranded soldiers, officials from the Army post in Gundna contacted local villagers on the evening of January 24 and sought their help.

Early the next morning, around 8.30 am on January 25, villagers began the rescue effort. “The Army provided us with shoes, gloves and food packets. We carried our own shovels and started cutting through the snow to make a narrow path,” The Indian Express quoted a villager involved in the operation, as saying.

The villagers walked for nearly five hours through steep and snow-covered terrain. By around 1.30 pm, they reached the stranded soldiers. With their help, the Army personnel were guided safely down the mountain by evening.

Defence Ministry spokesperson Lt Colonel Suneel Baratwal confirmed that civilians had joined the Army in making a passage through heavy snow in difficult mountain conditions.

On the same day, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) carried out another rescue operation at Chatergala Top on the Bhaderwah–Chamba interstate road in Doda district, located at an altitude of about 11,500 feet. The operation, which continued into the early hours of January 26, led to the rescue of 40 Army personnel and around 20 civilians.

Meanwhile, heavy snowfall has badly affected daily life in Doda and Kishtwar districts. An avalanche was also reported in the remote Warwan Valley of Kishtwar, damaging grazing areas and creating panic among locals who depend on livestock for survival.