Soldier slips to death in J&K's Pir Panjal range

Jammu, Aug 20 (IANS) An Indian soldier died on Friday after he fell into a deep gorge in J&K's Pir Panjal mountain range, a defence statement said."... at around 1.15 p. m. while operating along the higher reaches of Pir Panjal Range in a deliberately-planned counter terrorist operation, Sepoy Lovepreet Singh made supreme sacrifice in the line of duty as he suffered a 40 feet fall into a gorge while negotiating the difficult heights."The valiant soldier was acting as guide to the party which was moving along a treacherous route from Jabbiwal to Bagsar (Poonch)," it said.According to the statement, Lovepreet Singh, 23, was from Punjab's Gurdaspur, and is survived by his parents. "Sepoy Lovepreet Singh was a brave, highly motivated and sincere soldier. The nation will always remain indebted to him for the supreme sacrifice and devotion to duty," the statement said.
--IANS sq/vd