Subedar Major Pawan Kumar, killed in Pak shelling, cremated with state honours in Himachal

Subedar Major Pawan Kumar, who was killed in shelling by Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir's Pooch, was cremated with full state honours at his native village in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra on Sunday. Emotional scenes were witnessed as his son lit the funeral pyre. His family members, friends and a large number of mourners bid him tearful adieu amid slogans of "Subedar Major Pawan Kumar Amar rahe" and "Pakistan Murdabad".

Pawan Kumar's body, wrapped in tricolour, reached Shahpur from Jammu around 1 pm on Sunday and cries of the bereaved family members rent the air.

Himachal Pradesh Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania paid homage on behalf of the government, while Agriculture Minister Chander Kumar, Deputy DC Hemraj Bairwa and SP Shalini Agnihotri offered floral tributes.


Former Assembly Speaker Vipin Parmar, former minister Sarveen Chaudhary, and former MLA Arun Kumar also attended the funeral and paid tributes.

Paying tributes to the braveheart, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu acknowledged his supreme sacrifice in defence of the country's unity.

"The nation will forever remain indebted to his courage. The state government stands firmly with his family in this hour of grief," he said in a statement issued here on Sunday.

Pawan Kumar, a resident of Ward Number 4 in Shahpur, served with the 25 Punjab Regiment and his father, Garaj Singh, is also a retired Havildar of the Indian Army. The martyr leaves behind his parents, wife, son, and daughter.