The body of one of two soldiers who had been missing since Monday in Jammu and Kashmir was found on Thursday in a forested area in the Anantnag district, PTI reported.
The body of the soldier was found in the Gadole forest in the Kokernag area. A preliminary examination suggested that he may have died of hypothermia, as temperatures in the area had dropped sharply following heavy snowfall, according to PTI.
Search operations are underway to locate the second missing soldier.
The two soldiers, part of an elite para unit, went missing during a combing operation launched in the Kokernag area after inputs that suspected militants might be hiding there, The Indian Express reported.
“On the intervening night of October 6 and 7, an operational team on the Kishtwar range confronted a severe snowstorm and whiteout conditions in the mountains of southern Kashmir,” Chinar Corps said in a social media post on Wednesday. “Since then, two soldiers have gone out of communication.”
Intense search and rescue operations have been launched but were hampered due to prevailing adverse weather conditions, it added.
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