Bagdogra (WB), Aug 18 (PTI) Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday felicitated 19 'Veer Naris', who are mothers and widows of Territorial Army soldiers who died in the massive landslide at Tupul in Manipur at a solemn function organised by Trishakti Corps at Bengdubi military station here.

Also Read | 59% Employers Keen on Hiring Freshers in India in July-December 2022: Report.

He applauded the bravery and the supreme sacrifice of valiant soldiers of 107 Infantry Battalion (Territorial Army), 11 Gorkha Rifles, a Defence statement said.

Also Read | 5G Launch Update: After Spectrum Allocation, Narendra Modi Govt Has Big Advice For Telcos.

Felicitating the 19 'Veer Naris', the defence minister said that the nation shares the grief of the bereaved families and assured them that the government will ensure their financial stability.

"Sacrifices made by the soldiers can never be repaid and the country will always be indebted to them," Singh said during his interaction with the 'veer naris'.

The statement said that Singh presented cheques of Rs seven lakh to each 'Veer Nari' in order to mitigate their hardship.

One company of 107 Inf Bn (Territorial Army) 11 GR was deployed near Tupul railway station for protection of an under construction railway line from Jiribam to Imphal and were hit by a massive landslide which struck the company operating base on the intervening night of June 29/30. It had killed 61 people within a couple of seconds, including an officer, three junior commissioned officers and 26 soldiers of other ranks of 107 Inf Bn (TA) 11 GR, it said.

Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pande, General Officer Commanding, 33 Corps, Lt General Tarun Kumar Aich and other senior Army officers were present at the programme.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)