For soldiers, work is worship, says Army Chief

New Delhi: Senior officers of the Army, including Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat, paid tributes to the two soldiers, Naik Dipak Kumar Maity and Manivannan G, whom militants had killed in an ambush on Saturday near Qazigund along the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

After paying tributes to the two jawans at the Palam airport, Gen. Rawat commented that for the Army “work was worship”.’ Bodies of the two soldiers are being taken to their native places for cremation with full military honours. While Naik Kumar Maity, 43, was from Midnapore in West Bengal, 25-year-old Manivannan was from Thiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu. Naik who joined the Army in 1997 is survived by his wife and a minor daughter, while Manivannan by his parents.

“For any soldier, work is like his religion so work is worship is for us and we must all pay our respect and homage to these brave soldiers who have attained martyrdom in the line of duty,’’ the Army Chief said.

The Army Chief, along with his top brass, had recently visited front locations along the LoC where he was briefed about the operational readiness of the security forces. During the visit, the Army Chief had asked the troops deployed along the Indo-Pak border to remain on high alert and be completely focused on any activity from the other side. Gen. Rawat also held discussions with Jammu and Kashmir governor N.N. Vohra on different aspects related to the prevailing security situation in the Valley.