Roundup: Military retrieves bodies of 9 troopers, pulls alive survivor in Indian-controlled Kashmir avalanche

Indian military Tuesday said it has pulled alive a trooper and retrieved bodies of nine others buried under an avalanche on Siachen Glacier near Line of Control (LoC) in Indian-controlled Kashmir.

"It is to the credit and dogged determination of the rescue teams which were working under extreme conditions that they have managed to rescue Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad alive from under more than 30-feet of snow," Indian military spokesman S D Goswami said. "Koppad exhibited a super-human feat by surviving for six days buried under snow."

Koppad survived miraculously for six days underneath the snow and was pulled out in critical condition by military rescuers on Monday. Soon after he was airlifted to military hospital in New Delhi for treatment.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and army chief visited Koppad in hospital.

However, nine troopers including a junior-level officer buried along with Koppad were found dead.

"It is with deep regret that we wish to confirm that mortal remains of remaining nine martyrs including a junior commissioned officer were also retrieved by the rescue teams," Goswami said.

An avalanche hit military post located at a height of 19,600 feet (5,974 meters) on the Siachen Glacier last week burying alive ten troopers.

Though military immediately pressed in rescue teams including helicopters from air force to trace the missing troopers, however after failing to locate them for two days, it declared them dead.

The bodies of the nine troopers according to Goswami would be flown to their home towns as soon as possible.

In 2014, body of a trooper was found 18 years after he was reported missing from the glacier.

Siachen Glacier considered as the highest battlefield in world is at an altitude of 7,000 meters above sea level in Ladakh province of Indian-controlled Kashmir.

It is located in eastern Karakoram range in the Himalayan mountains on LoC between India and Pakistan.

On Sunday, India's Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar dismissed suggestions for withdrawal of troops from Siachen.

"The military presence in Siachen is in consonance with the country's security needs," Parrikar told reporters on the sidelines of an international maritime conference in Visakhapatnam city of Andhra Pradesh.

Parrikar described death of troopers in the avalanche as nature's show of strength to which government was helpless.

Kashmir has a rugged terrain. Landslides and avalanches are often triggered from its mountains during frequent rains and heavy snow the region receives. Endit